April 24, 2008	Thursday	Rabi-us-Sani 17, 1429

RAWALPINDI, April 23: Cases of murder and car snatching went up in Rawalpindi but the total number of crimes dropped from 3,280 to 2,845 in the first quarter of this year, official sources said.

The overall crime has fallen in the first quarter of this year, but car theft is still a concern for the police, SP Khurram Shahzad Waraich told Dawn. There were 3,280 cases recorded by the police in the first quarter, 335 less than that in the corresponding period last year.

Though the number of recorded cases has fallen but hundreds of people live in a constant fear of violent crime and car theft.

The police figures showed 53 murder cases were reported during the period compared to 42 during the three months of last year. In the 53 murder cases, 106 persons were nominated as accused while 44 were arrested.