MOSCOW, July 11 (AVN) - As many as 1,563,218 crimes were committed in Russia in the first half of 2001 which is 4.5 percent more than in the same period in 2000, Major General Vladimir Klimov, chief inspector and consultant of the Interior Ministry main inspection department, told the Military News Agency on Wednesday.
The data is contained in the statistics review of the ministry's main information centre that was supplied to the subdepartments of the ministry's administration.
The number of grave and very grave crimes is very large for they have grown eight percent in 2001 comparing it to 2000, Klimov said. Those crimes amount at 933,794 which is two thirds of the total number of crimes. Out of that number the largest growth was registered in the economic sphere which makes 5.9 percent, in the spheres of illegal drug turnover which is 11.3 percent and illegal arms turnover which makes 4.2 percent. The rate of murders and murder attempts grew 14.2 percent while the premeditated bodily harm rate grew 11.1 percent.