Nearly a Third of Mexico Households Targets of Crime, Study Says

Nearly a of third of households in Mexico suffered a crime in 2011 and only in 8% of those cases was a preliminary investigation opened, according to new figures from the national statistics institute.

The numbers demonstrate that crimes with victims, including robbery, assault, car theft, extortion, identity theft, and kidnappings, are widely under-reported to authorities in Mexico and that the true scope is probably unknown.

The National Institute of Statistics and Geography, or Inegi by its Spanish acronym, polled 95,903 homes this spring and asked respondents to list instances of crime victimization in 2011, not including homicides.

In 30.6% of households polled, at least one adult resident was victimized in 2011. When the victim was present, “physical aggression” occurred in 26.6% of the cases.

The most common crimes were robberies or muggings, car thefts and burglaries. In 91.6% of the cases, preliminary investigations were not started, as victims widely distrust the police or see reporting crimes as a “waste of time,” Inegi said in an analysis released Sept. 27.

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