By Jennifer Warren
Murders dropped 41.5 percent to seven in 2000 in the precinct from 12 the previous year,
The 102nd Precinct, which covers Richmond Hill, Woodhaven, Kew Gardens, and parts of Ozone Park, also reported a significant drop in burglaries, which were down by 24.5 percent to 717 last year from 950 the year before.
During the year, nearly all of the seven major crime categories – murder, rape, robbery, felonious assault, burglary, grand larceny and auto theft – showed decreases, with the exception of rape, which increased by one. Last year 28 rapes were reported as compared to 27 in 1999, increasing the rate by 3.7 percent, the statistics show.
Overall, however, crime in the 102nd Precinct's neighborhoods fell by 12.15 percent for the year, with 3,071 reports of crime, down from 3,496 reported incidents in 1999, according to the year-end statistics.
All city precincts, including the 102nd Precinct, compile and submit their crime numbers to police headquarters in Manhattan every Monday.
The reports are used to tally crime statistics, which are ultimately sent to the FBI.
Robbery dropped by 14 percent to 547 reports last year from 638 in 1999. This category contained a pattern of robberies early in the year in which a man pointed his gun at mothers and their young children in subway or train stations and demanded jewelry or money. One of the incidents took place at the 121st Street subway station in Richmond Hill. A 31-year-old St. Albans man was arrested in connection with the robbery a week later.
Incidents of felonious assault were virtually unchanged, dropping just one percent to 380 reports last year from 384 the previous year.
Grand larceny was down 11.5 percent to 441 reports last year from 499 reports in 1999. And grand larceny auto dipped 3.5 percent to 951 incidents from 986 the previous year, according to the Police Department.
