Violent crime in Uptown down since last year, CMPD says

CHARLOTTE — The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said that despite recent shootings, violent crime in Uptown is down 17% over last year.

However, CMPD’s solve rate for residential crime in Center City is below 25%.

Investigative reporter Madison Carter shares why police say that number is misleading.

Carter pulled records from the last 2 ½ years at six uptown apartment complexes.

In nearly 300 reports, Carter found most of them were listed as open and a handful were shown to be solved.

Capt. Bret Balamucki with CMPD’s Central Division explained it makes sense that people feel safe despite what the reports look like.

“When we look at the numbers initially, they look like there are a lot of apartments that got broken into,” Balamucki said. “But when we dive into those numbers, we see that a lot of those are, you know, package rooms that are used by all everyone in the building.”

He said package and auto thefts drive the numbers we’re seeing throughout Charlotte.

Carter asked, “Because of the affluent nature of people who are able to afford to live in Uptown, are we seeing higher rates of burglary and theft at times there, or do you see this in all parts of the city?”

“I think it’s pretty consistent throughout the whole city,” Balamucki said.

Police say the reason 75% of residential crimes in Uptown still go unsolved is due to Charlotte’s rapid growth.

“We’re getting more people Uptown,” the captain said. “More apartment buildings are being built, so we’re our occupancy keeps going up. The people that we serve keep going up. The officer numbers sometimes stay the same.”

People in Uptown told Carter they appreciate how CMPD responds to crime.

“Anytime I see anything go on, police sirens are seconds away,” resident Miriam Thomas said.

Reports call Charlotte the fastest-growing metropolitan area in the U.S.

However, it’s still small enough that people living in Center City feel it’s relatively safe.

“I feel pretty safe here,” Thomas said.

Thibault Nole moved to Uptown after living in France for 20 years.

“Compared to France, I would say it’s safer,” Nole said.

He said crime in Charlotte is nothing compared to what he’s used to in France.

“There’s less petty crime. I mean, there’s obviously more gun violence here,” Nole said.

Violent crime is down 17% year over year but when it comes to theft and burglary, police are asking you to file a report, even if it seems minor, such as a stolen package. That helps the department track serial suspects and hopefully prevent future crimes by the same people.

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