WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Violent crime in the United States fell in 2009 for the third straight year, with the number of murders dropping to a level not seen in four decades, according to FBI statistics released on Monday.

Violent crime dropped 5.3 percent in 2009, including a 7.3 percent decline in murders, an 8 percent drop in robberies, a 4.2 percent decline in aggravated assaults and 2.6 percent fall in rapes, according to the final 2009 statistics.

There were 15,241 murders in 2009, authorities reported to the FBI, a level not seen since 1969 when there were 14,760, according to the Justice Department. The number of murders came close to that level in 1999 when there were 15,522.

Property crimes in the United States also fell last year, by 4.6 percent, with motor vehicle thefts plummeting 17.1 percent and burglary down 1.3 percent, the FBI said.

In New York City, the largest U.S. city, the violent crime rate dropped just over 4 percent, including a 10 percent drop in the number of murders. Meanwhile, property crime also fell 5.3 percent, according to the statistics.

“Although there are many reasons behind the decline, one thing is certain: smarter policing practices and investments in law enforcement play a significant role in reducing violent and property crime,” U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement.

While there were declines in the crime rates across the board, the FBI statistics showed increases in residential burglaries, up 1.8 percent, and a larger spike in reported shoplifting, rising 7.9 percent.

Violent crime also dropped in states like Arizona, nearly 14 percent, where local officials have complained that illegal immigrants coming across the porous U.S. border with Mexico were contributing to increases in criminal activity.

However, in the Arizona city of Nogales, which is located on the U.S.-Mexican border, the violent crime rate remained unchanged from 2008 though property crime dropped almost 14 percent. In nearby Tucson, violent crime fell 16 percent, but property crime statistics were incomplete.

The Obama administration in July successfully sued to block key parts of a tough Arizona law requiring police during the course of an arrest to investigate the immigration status of people they suspected were in the state illegally.