KBI report: Violent crime, including murder, increased in Kansas in 2016

Violent crime and murder are on the rise in Kansas, according to the annual crime report released Thursday by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.

The KBI’s 2016 Kansas Crime Index Report found an overall increase of 4.2 percent in violent crimes such as murders, rapes, robberies and aggravated assaults and batteries. This increase occurred even after a sharp 11.2 percent increase for these violent crimes in 2015.

The murder rate continued to rise in 2016. According to the report, Kansas had 148 reported murders, an increase of 12 percent over the number reported in 2015. Of these, 14.3 percent involved multiple murders in a single incident. The murder rate in 2016 is as high as Kansas has seen since 2000, when 156 murders were reported. The highest murder rate recorded in the state was in 1993, with 188 murders reported.

The KBI report compiles crime statistics reported to the KBI by law enforcement agencies across Kansas.

While violent crime had increased, the report found that property crimes have tended to decline in the past several years. 2016, however, saw a 2 percent increase in the overall property crime rate, which the report concluded was driven by a significant increase in motor vehicle thefts.

The full 2016 Kansas Crime Index report can be found here.