Question:
Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs from 2000 to 2020, what are the statistics for the share of violent offences that are (i) committed by juveniles and (ii) gang-related.
Answer:
Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law:
1. The Police define violent offences as the commission of: (i) rioting-related offences under Sections 146 to 148 of the Penal Code; and (ii) serious hurt offences under Section 323A, and Sections 324 to 326 of the Penal Code.
2. Table 1 shows the statistics for 2009 to 2021. The number of violent offences has been on a general decline since 2009. The percentage of violent offences committed by juveniles has fallen, although it rose in 2021 compared to recent years. The percentage of violent offences that were gang-related has hovered around 15% to 25%.
3. The profile of persons involved in the commission of violent offences was not tracked prior to 2009.
Table 1: Statistics for violent offences committed by (i) juveniles1 and (ii) gang-related
| Year |
No. of
violent
offences
(total) |
No. of
violent
offences
that were
committed
by juveniles |
Percentage
of violent
offences
that were
committed by
juveniles |
No. of
violent
offences
that were
gang-related |
Percentage
of violent
offences
that were
gang-related |
| 2009 |
689 |
80 |
11.6% |
115 |
16.7% |
| 2010 |
691 |
102 |
14.8% |
120 |
17.4% |
| 2011 |
578 |
70 |
12.1% |
90 |
15.6% |
| 2012 |
643 |
48 |
7.5% |
123 |
19.1% |
| 2013 |
638 |
45 |
7.1% |
104 |
16.3% |
| 2014 |
681 |
42 |
6.2% |
124 |
18.2% |
| 2015 |
587 |
33 |
5.6% |
125 |
21.3% |
| 2016 |
604 |
23 |
3.8% |
124 |
20.5% |
| 2017 |
523 |
26 |
5.0% |
104 |
19.9% |
| 2018 |
536 |
28 |
5.2% |
97 |
18.1% |
| 2019 |
467 |
21 |
4.5% |
119 |
25.5% |
| 2020 |
501 |
20 |
4.0% |
119 |
23.8% |
| 2021 |
492 |
36 |
7.3% |
90 |
18.3% |
[1] Juveniles refer to those above the age of 10, but below the age of 16. This is the statutory definition of juvenile in the Children and Young Persons Act (CYPA).
