Homicides are up 10%, but still near record lows

The number of people killed or killed in Scotland rose by 10% last year but is still the third lowest since records began in 1976, new figures show.

The latest official homicide statistics show that 57 people were killed in 2023-2024, five more than the previous year.

Since 2004, the number of homicide victims has decreased by 58%, compared to 137.

The numbers suggest that the rate of decline has slowed over the past decade.

The latest statistics show that the city of Glasgow has had 10 homicide victims, the highest rate of any region in Scotland.

It accounts for 18% of homicides in Scotland, despite being only 12% of the population.

However, Glasgow’s homicide rate has fallen faster than the rest of Scotland over the past 20 years.

The report found that 44 victims were men and 13 were women.

Men were most often accused of committing crimes (81%).

It is said that most of the victims were known to their killers.

Women were more likely to be killed by a partner or ex-partner, while men were more likely to be killed by an acquaintance.

Age of victims

Scotland’s chief statistician said homicide victims aged 16 to 24 had fallen by the most in a 20-year period.

In the five years from 2004-05 to 2008-09, there were 125 victims in this age range. This fell to 29 between 2019-20 and 2023-24.

The report said this was not the same for England and Wales, where there was a significantly higher average rate of victims in this age range.

The latest figures also showed that nine children under the age of 16 were murdered, with four of them killed by their parents.

The most common method of killing was a sharp instrument, such as a knife, the report said.

It is noted that 33 victims were killed due to drug-related problems.

Although shootings are rare in Scotland, there have been two recorded shootings in the past year.