Violent crimes often spike in the summertime, and as the mercury rose in Brooklyn last month, so too did the crime rate in some parts of the borough, according to the latest NYPD data.
The overall rate of major felonies rose in more than half of Brooklyn’s 23 police precincts during the 28-day period ending on June 2 compared to the same period last year, statistics show, though the number of crimes reported dropped very slightly — by less than 1%.
In the Brooklyn South patrol, the rate of violent crime increased by 1.65%, from 1,155 total incidents reported between May 5-June 2 last year to 1,174 this year. The district saw a notable increase in robbery, felony assault, and grand larceny auto — while murder, rape, burglary, and grand larceny all decreased.
Meanwhile, the overall crime rate in Brooklyn North fell 2.71% from 1,328 incidents in 2023 to 1,292 in 2024. Despite that drop, the patrol saw an increase in murder, rape, robbery, burglary, and grand larceny auto, statistics show.
Brooklyn North has seen a significant uptick in homicides this year. Between May 5-June 2, a total of eight homicides were reported in the district – up 14.3% from last year. Year-to-date, homicides in the patrol are up 6.7%, for a total of 31. Shooting incidents also jumped by 42.1% during the most recent 28-day period, from 19 to 27, though shootings are down slightly year-to-date.
Shootings and homicides rose dramatically in Brownsville
The 73rd Precinct, which includes Brownsville and Ocean Hill, has seen a particularly violent year. During the 28-day period ending on June 2, homicides rose 200%, from one to three. So far this year, the precinct has reported a 225% rise in homicides, for a total of 13 — and a 50% rise in shooting incidents, from 16 to 24. Seven of those incidents occurred between May 5-June 2.
Those incidents included a man shot to death outside his Strauss Street home on May 12, one man killed and another wounded by a gunman on Pitkin Avenue on May 18. On June 2, a 12-year-old boy allegedly accidentally shot his cousin while they played with a firearm in a Brownsville apartment. Two young girls were shot and wounded in a Brownsville park on June 3 in an incident not yet reflected in official statistics.
Homicides increased in three other precincts across the borough — the 61st, which includes parts of Kings Bay, Gravesend, Sheepshead Bay, and Manhattan Beach; the 79th, which includes Bedford-Stuyvesant; and the 83rd in Bushwick.
Assaults and grand larceny auto tick up across Brooklyn
A dozen precincts reported an uptick in felony assaults — some dramatic. The 70th Precinct, which includes parts of Midwood, Ditmas Park, and Prospect Park South, reported an 112% increase when compared to the same 28-day period last year — from 16 to 34. The 84th Precinct in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Downtown Brooklyn and Dumbo, meanwhile, saw 26 assaults, up more than 136% from last year.
Thirteen precincts, meanwhile, reported upticks in grand larceny auto and robbery. Grand larceny auto has been rampant in Brooklyn over the past year — and though the number of cars stolen had trended downward in recent months, a total of 308 incidents of grand larceny auto were reported across Brooklyn between May 2-June 3.
Hate crimes on the rise
Hate crimes have also increased in both Brooklyn patrols this year, the data show. During the most recent 28-day period, hate crimes rose 16.7% from six to seven in Brooklyn South and 266.7% from three to 11 in Brooklyn North. Year-over-year, hate crimes are up 17.2% in Brooklyn North and 55.6% in Brooklyn South.
On May 30, cops arrested a 12-year-old boy for allegedly assaulting two children wearing yarmulkes as they played outside in Bed-Stuy. A day earlier, a man allegedly attacked men and students outside a Flatbush yeshiva in his car, driving over the curb and attempting to hit them on the sidewalk and lawns.
