Melrose 'Major Crime' Down in First Quarter

MELROSE - Melrose saw a more than 55 percent drop in what the FBI term "major crimes," according to numbers released by the police department.

Murder/manslaughter, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, arson, and motor vehicle theft - known as "Part 1 Incidents" - were down on the whole in the first quarter of 2017 compared to the first quarter of 2016.

Between Jan. 1, 2017, and March 31, 2017, there were 28 cases of larceny were reported, down from the 72 reported during the same time period in 2016. Aggravated assault instances were down from seven to two. Motor vehicle thefts were down from 13 to six, robberies went down from two to one, while there were no homicides as arson - same as last year.

One rape was reported this year as opposed to zero at this time last year. Burglaries also went up slightly, from with five to six.

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Melrose saw an overall 27 percent drop in Part 1 crimes from 2015.

“We continue to see a decrease in major crimes throughout the City of Melrose,” Chief Michael Lyle said. “I certainly want to commend all members of the Melrose Police Department for working to keep our community safe.”

There were 90 reports of Part 2 crimes in the first quarter this year. Those crimes include vandalism, simple assault, fraud, trespassing, and others. The department did not provide first-quarter stats for last year's Part 2 crimes; the overall number of reports for 2016 was 366.