There were spikes in multiple types of crime in Montgomery County this year compared to last year, including auto thefts, carjackings, homicides, robberies and burglaries.
Here is some data on what these crime numbers looked like in 2023, according to DataMontgomery, along with the most-read story by page views in each category.
The data in this story is from DataMontgomery and ranges from 2016 (that is how far back DataMontgomery goes) to Dec. 28.
Homicides
A MoCo360 analysis in September indicated that the county was on pace for the second-highest number of homicides in a year since at least 2016. There were 28 homicides in 2023, up from 21 in 2022, according to DataMontgomery. The previous spike in homicides was in 2021 when there were 30 homicides.
Read more:
- Body found in Colesville in January was missing woman, homicide victim, police said
- Silver Spring woman’s 16-month-old son beaten to death by boyfriend, police alleged in May
- Teen fatally shot at Wheaton Metro station; assailant escapes
Auto thefts
There were 3,438 auto thefts in 2023, which is around a 130% increase from the 1,499 auto thefts in 2022. Skyrocketing auto thefts drove county police in June to relaunch the auto crime unit that had been disbanded as part of budget cuts in Montgomery County’s 2021 budget. This is the worst year for auto thefts since at least 2016, according to DataMontgomery.
Read more:
- 13 students from Montgomery County Public Schools arrested in November for carjackings and auto thefts, police said
- Vehicle-theft suspects in Wheaton lead police on chase resulting in injury, 2 crashes, 2 arrests, police say
- Seven teens charged with stealing one Hyundai Sonata
Carjackings
In August, a MoCo360 analysis showed that it was clear that a yearslong trend meant 2023’s numbers would be high compared to previous years. There were 112 carjackings in 2023, which is over a 40% increase from the 79 carjackings in 2022, according to DataMontgomery. This is the worst year since at least 2016, DataMontgomery showed.
Read more:
- 12 carjackings and a shooting at Wheaton Mall have residents fearful
- Woman shot at Wheaton Mall in attempted carjacking; suspect in custody
- Carjacking, shooting spree spanned Anacostia to Wheaton, police allege
Robberies and burglaries
There were 2,215 robberies and burglaries in 2023, which surpassed the 1988 robberies and burglaries in 2022, DataMontgomery indicated. This includes a spike in retail crime over the past year. This is the worst year for robberies and burglaries since 2017, according to DataMontgomery.
Read more:
- Video showcases latest episode of MoCo ‘organized retail crime’
- Antisemitic language hurled during robbery, assault at Gaithersburg Giant, police say
- Robber stabs Silver Spring CVS manager
In an email to MoCo360, Montgomery County Police spokesperson Shiera Goff said the department will provide a comment once its analysts review the data. The story will be updated when police provide a comment.
