The UAE’s Ministry of Interior said that there has been a fall in the rate of serious crimes and prison population following the emergence of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, The National reported.
According to Sheikh Saif bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, said that the UAE reported only 34 ‘worrying crimes’ in 2020, compared to 49 in 2019, 78 in 2018 and 89 in 2016.
“In the beginning of the pandemic everybody expected crime to rise – however, the UAE managed to maintain a low rate,” The National quoted him as saying.
He added that the rate of fire incidents also decreased from 700 in 2019 to 381 in 2020, and he thanked the public for their high level of awareness.
In addition, the minister noted that overall number of prisoners fell by 21.6 percent. This is mainly due to the decision to allow hundreds of prisoners to be released early and returned home.
He also said that only four percent of the prison population caught COVID-19.
