BRENDA O’FARRELL
The 1510 West

There was less crime reported in the West Island last year than in 2023, according to the Montreal police service’s 2024 report released earlier this month.

But while the overall number of crimes in the West Island fell by about 3.2 per cent, the number of violent crimes against people jumped by 8.8 per cent. This included the number of reported assaults, which hit 1,271 in 2024, 69 more than the 1,202 reported in 2023 and 233 more cases than the 1,038 reported in 2022.

The number of assaults in the West Island last year accounted for just more than half — 54.7 per cent —of all crimes committed against an individual, according to the statistics revealed June 9 by the Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal.

The rate of increase in the number of crimes against individuals increased at a faster rate in the West Island last year than across the across the entire Montreal territory as a whole,

Since 2017, the number of assaults reported in the West Island has increased by 87 per cent. Last year, almost three-quarters of all assaults were reported in areas covered by police stations 3 and 5 – Pierrefonds-Roxboro and Île Bizard, and Pointe Claire and Dorval.

A total of 238 robberies of people were reported in the West Island last year, up about 33 per cent from 2023, when 179 were recorded.

The number of sexual assaults reported in the West Island in 2024 hit 151, two fewer than the 153 reported in 2023.

There was one murder in the region last year, in Dollard des Ormeaux. In 2023, one murder was reported by police covering Pointe Claire and Dorval. In 2022, four murders were committed in the West Island, an annual record for the region.

The total number of crimes against property reported in the West Island last year hit 4,473, the largest category of crimes. This represents a 9.7-per-cent drop from the 4,955 incidents reported the previous year.

The most frequently reported crime in that category last year in the West Island was petty larceny, or small thefts, which accounted for 1,528 cases. This figure is down 112 from the 1,640 cases reported in 2023.

The second largest number of crimes against property was vehicle theft. And again, the total number of vehicles stolen in the West Island last year was 1,072, down 330, or 23.5 per cent, from the 1,402 reported in 2023.

The number of break-ins to homes in the region remained relatively the same, with 402 reported in 2024. In the previous year, 407 break-ins were reported across the West Island.

In contrast, while the number of overall crimes dropped in the West Island, the overall number of crimes on the entire island of Montreal increased by 2.7 per cent, pushing the total number of crimes in 2024 to 115,729, compared with 112,634 in 2023.

Across the island, crimes against individuals rose by 7.3 per cent last year compared with 2023, while property crimes remained relatively stable, increasing by 0.4 per cent.