2008 was the peak year for gang homicides in Canada, with a rate of 0.42 per 100,000, followed by a fairly steep decline up to the year 2013. But while the big picture sees the rate of violent crime holding steady or declining, the subset of gang-related homicides has been ticking upwards again. Why gang murders are differentMost gang murders — over three-quarters of them — are carried out with firearms, compared to only 20 per cent of non-gang-related murders. Gang killings are also harder to solve, partly because they involve groups retaliating against other groups, and victims who had many potential enemies. The recent growth in gang-related homicides appears to be driving down the overall rate of solved homicides in Canada.

Source: CBC News March 07, 2018 19:39 UTC