The Philippine National Police (PNP) reported on Saturday that the country’s overall crime rate fell by 12.4 percent in 2025, driven by significant double-digit declines in most major offenses.
Data from the PNP Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management (DIDM) showed that incidents of “focus crimes”—which include murder, homicide, physical injury, rape, robbery, theft, and carnapping—totaled 35,717 in 2025.
This is a decrease of 5,054 cases compared to the 40,771 incidents recorded in 2024.
Rape cases saw the most substantial reduction, dropping 22.68 percent from 9,910 in 2024 to 7,662 last year. Carnapping of motor vehicles also saw a notable decline of over 20 percent.
The decline in violent crimes was led by a 17.8 percent drop in murder cases, which fell from 4,151 in 2024 to 3,412 in 2025.
Similarly, homicide incidents decreased by 14.98 percent, with the total number of cases settling at 1,078 for the year.
Physical injury cases also saw a double-digit improvement, sliding 13.98 percent from 5,593 to 4,811 incidents.
Crimes against property followed a similar trend, as robbery cases fell 11.87 percent to 3,645, while theft recorded a more modest decrease of 4.31 percent, totaling 12,662 reported cases.
Acting PNP Chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. attributed the improvement to consistent law enforcement strategies and intensified police presence.
“Every decrease in cases translates to a safer community,” Nartatez said in a statement. “In 2026, we will strengthen our steps to stop crime and ensure that wrongdoers are brought to justice.”
The national police force also noted that the downward trend was sustained throughout the latter half of the year, with crime incidents between late August and December 2025 dropping by 11.64 percent compared to the previous four-month period.