Overview
- Statistics Canada’s July 2026 release shows the Crime Severity Index fell five per cent in 2025 and the conventional crime rate edged down two per cent to 5,585 incidents per 100,000 people.
- Police reported 672 homicides in 2025, a 16 per cent drop from 2024 that Statistics Canada says is the largest year‑over‑year decline since 1986.
- Breaking‑and‑entering fell 11 per cent to 264 incidents per 100,000 people and was the single largest contributor to the CSI decline, and motor‑vehicle theft fell 16 per cent to 83,652 incidents.
- Shoplifting increased for the fifth straight year with 208,941 incidents in 2025, up 11 per cent, and total fraud fell four per cent but remains about 61 per cent higher than in 2015.
- Statistics Canada cautions that some offences are undercounted, noting CSAEM incidents fell in police data but are typically underreported and generative artificial intelligence is creating new investigative challenges that could further strain police resources.