Wikimedia Commons/Edward Kimmel
Wikimedia Commons/Edward Kimmel
Eighty-one people were murdered last year in Albuquerque.
The gruesome number sets a new record for the total number of people killed in the city. Previously the record had been 72 people murdered in a single year.
The Mayor of Albuquerque, Tim Keller, has acknowledged the problem and said that it’s their biggest challenge.
"We’re trying to address it on a number of fronts," Keller told KOAT. “There is no one easy answer to homicide, so we’re working on this in a couple of different ways."
One way is by adding more police officers to patrol the city. In 2018 and 2019 the police department has added 100 new officers each year to the force.
The Albuquerque Police Department has so far made 32 arrests with regards to the 2019 caseload. However, there are a remaining 39 cases that still have not led to an arrest.
“When it comes to homicide, I know there’s real frustration, and actually we feel it too, having my own family," Keller said. “I know what it feels like not to feel safe, even in the place where you worship or where our kids go to school.”
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