The City of New York may happily be reporting that 2012’s homicides reached a 50-year low, but its overall crime rate is poised to rise for the first time in this generation and they have Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to partially thank for this.
Overall crime in the city’s five boroughs has risen 3% to date from Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) products thefts, reported the Wall Street Journal. This is off from this year’s numbers according to Paul Browne, the NYPD’s spokesman, who added that if this number had stayed the same, “we would be experiencing a slight decline in crime citywide.”
How does this compare to the city’s other crimes? At the present time, the number of shooting incidents has dropped 8.5% with the number of shooting victims falling further to 10.2%.
Furthermore, through Dec. 9 which represents the NYPD’s most recent statistics on its website, rape, robbery and burglary slightly rose this year as compared to 2011’s numbers. Grand larceny increased 9%, which officials have blamed on the rising thefts in personal electronic devices, including Apple iPhones.
Between the time period of Jan. 1 and Sept. 23, 2012, Apple products had been stolen in 11,447 total incidents–a 40 percent rise from the previous year, reported Bloomberg.
Noting the rising problem and believing it could get worse, the NYPD placed officers in 21 citywide stores where the iPhone 5 was available on sale Sept. 21, to assist consumers in registering their devices so they could be traced if they were stolen at a later time. Approximately 1,500 phones had been registered through these efforts.
But this wasn’t the first time the NYPD had helped with the coveted products. Earlier in the year, the department armed patrol officers with technology that enabled them to find stolen iPhones and other Apple products. The tools have also allowed officers to take back the stolen goods and arrest the thieves.
Browne said to Bloomberg, “Our emphasis on prevention and investigation of Apple thefts stems from the fact that they are a magnet for crime, including robberies, driving the spike we’ve experienced this year.”
The rise in stolen Apple products hasn’t been limited to the U.S., the newest model has been reportedly stolen from stores in Japan and the U.K., when it finally hit their shelves last week. eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY) and other outlets are supposedly busy selling the iPhone 5, but Browne added that thefts of the new phone in New York City haven’t been reported.
Last week, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) said the demand for the new iPhone has been greater than its initial supply. This has resulted in some delays for online orders.
It has also affected weekend sales for the new phone as they fell short of analysts’ estimates after supply problems had shipments running delayed. According to a corporate statement, two million-plus iPhone 5s had been sold in its first three days of availability in China, setting a new record.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is current down 0.98%, trading at $515.26
