DUBAI // Serious crimes decreased last year but some categories, such as rape, prostitution and arson rose, figures released yesterday show.
Statistics released by Dubai Police CID show 2,611 serious crimes were reported last year, compared with 3,857 in 2009.
Police had previously reported 2,485 such crimes last year, compared with 3,265 in 2009. Officials did not explain the discrepancy.
Police have said more officers on the street, better training and new strategies have helped the decrease in crime.
The report defined serious crimes as rape, arson, prostitution, murder, homosexual rape, kidnap, car plate thefts, muggings, car thefts, pick-pocketing, car break-ins, impersonation of public officials, bribery and fraud, aggravated assault, commercial break-ins, home invasions, drugs and looting.
Most crimes occurred within the jurisdiction of the Bur Dubai police station, which covers the heavily populated area between the World Trade Centre and Al Quoz.
In 2009, 1,091 crimes were registered at the Bur Dubai police station. Last year there were only 491.
Rapes rose to 22 last year from 17 in 2009, the data show. The lowest number was 12, in 2007.
Arson rose to 30 last year from 21 in 2009, the report showed.
Prostitution cases doubled from 20 in 2009 to 40 cases last year.
Over the past four years, aggravated assaults have steadily risen according to the report. In 2007 there were 89, increasing to 103 in 2008, 115 in 2009, and 168 last year.
An aggravated assault is defined as a physical assault that can be deadly or lead to permanent damage.
But lesser crimes took a significant dip in recent years. In 2008, there were 1,138 such cases. That dropped to 770 in 2009 and to 184 last year.
Drug cases also dropped, to 726 last year from 1,054 in 2009.
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Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
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Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
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