Maine’s crime rate fell in 2024 for the third year in a row while the number of crimes committed in Bangor grew, according to the latest data from the state.
The state had a crime rate of 28.83 per 1,000 people in 2024, which dropped from 29.77 in 2023 and 32.17 in 2022, according to the Incident Based Reporting data released Tuesday by the state of Maine. There were 42,599 total crimes reported in 2024.
However, Bangor saw reported crimes grow from 3,700 in 2023 to 4,124 in 2024, according to the report. Intimidation was the most commonly reported crime with 704 instances. Intimidation cases, or criminal threatening in Maine, is when words or actions are used to threaten someone without a physical attack or displaying a dangerous weapon.
Bangor had the highest crime rate in the state at 104.63 total crimes per 1,000 people. Augusta had the second highest rate at 101.6, while Portland reported a rate of 53.95 crimes per 1,000 people.
Local police departments are likely reporting crimes differently, leading to the large disparity, the Bangor Daily News previously reported. Maine police departments began using a new database, the FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System, in 2021.
Bangor Police Department spokesperson Jeremy Brock did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Violent crime continued to fall in Maine, with a rate of .93 per 1,000 people in 2024. That rate is down from .98 in 2023 as well, even while that year’s homicide total was more than double that of 2022 because of the mass shooting in Lewiston that killed 18 people.
The exact number of crimes may change as police continue investigations and provide updates, according to the report. The violent crime rate for 2023 was initially reported as 1 per 1,000 people, but has changed because data was updated, the report said.
There were 33 homicides throughout Maine in 2024, compared with 60 in 2023, according to the report. Just over half, a total of 18, of the homicides in 2024 were committed with a firearm, while a knife or other cutting tool were used in seven of the killings.
Maine had 11,367 domestic violence assaults reported in 2024, compared with 12,065 reported in 2023.
There were 43 hate crime incidents reported in 2024, involving 49 victims, the report said. There were 41 offenders.
Of those, 21 were about race, ethnicity and ancestry bias, according to the report. Within that group 19 of those crimes were anti-Black or anti-African American. One was anti-Asian and one was anti-Native American.
Crimes against property also fell in 2024 by 64 total reported crimes. Destruction or vandalism of property was the second most reported crime, making up 5,045 reports. The most reported crime against property was “all other larceny” with 7,931.
