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The city’s murder total may have hit a 10-year high, but Vancouver police say the overall crime rate was down 1.5 per cent compared to 2016.

According to the VPD’s year-end crime statistics, there were 19 murders in 2017, the most since 20 homicides were recorded in 2008. Vancouver’s violent crime rate also jumped to 7.6 per 1,000 population in 2017, an uptick of 1.9 per cent from 2016.

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Shots-fired incidents increased to 31 in 2017 from 26 the previous year and sexual offences were up two per cent. Bank robberies, meanwhile, were down from 68 in 2016 to 52 in 2017.

The rise in violent crime bumped up against a 10-year downward trend, as the overall rate has decreased 31.5 per cent since 2008, when the city posted a violent crime rate of 11.1.

Vancouver’s property crime rate dropped almost two per cent, ending five consecutive years of increases. Break-ins to businesses and residences were significantly reduced by close to 18 per cent in 2017 over the previous year.