BART police chief says crime inching down

The agency that runs the Bay Area Rapid Transit system says the rate of aggravated assaults on trains and platforms has increased so far this year, while overall violent crimes have gone down.|
ASSOCIATED PRESS
BY ASSOCIATED PRESS

SAN FRANCISCO - The agency that runs San Francisco's Bay Area Rapid Transit system says the rate of aggravated assaults on trains and platforms has increased so far this year, while overall violent crimes have gone down.

BART Police Chief Carlos Roja tells the San Francisco Chronicle there's been a slight but encouraging downward trend in crime as the agency released statistics from the first third of 2018.

Public criticism has intensified overt drug use in BART corridors and homeless people sleeping in stations amid broader concerns about crime and safety.

The statistics say violent crime dropped 9 percent from January to April, despite a 26 percent jump in aggravated assaults.

Roja says it's an improvement after a 24 percent increase in violent crime in 2017 driven by robberies of electronic devices.

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Information from: San Francisco Chronicle, http://www.sfgate.com

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