Murderapolis 2.0: Murders on the rise in Minneapolis

Crime is on the rise again in Minneapolis. So far, 66 murders have been recorded in the city so far this year, according to official sources. With three months to go before the end of the year, this figure exceeds the 2019 data (60) and is approaching the 80 murders that occurred during the entire year of 2020. In 2021, the total number of murders was even higher at 93.

During the 1990s, Minnesota's most populous city was nicknamed Murderapolis after the amount of crime committed. Nearly 30 years later, it continues to hold the same nickname due to a new increase in its annual murder rate, so it can be considered Murderapolis 2.0.

Following the death of George Floyd in 2020, Minneapolis became the epicenter of the Defund the Police movement. The Democratic administration pushed for police defunding at the same time that there was an increase in murders and crime throughout the city. The event spurred a wave of radicalized crime, topping the numbers from the previous two years.

The defunding of the police also caused its workforce to be reduced from 900 officers in 2020 to approximately 560 (one third less). The decline in manpower was so strong that the Minneapolis Police Department started to hire "community service officers" to support the city's security forces.

One of the most dangerous sanctuary cities

Minneapolis is considered a sanctuary city in the United States. That means that it is one of the cities that implements policies to limit collaboration between its administration and the federal government on immigration matters. They also refuse to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to remove criminal aliens.

According to data compiled by the Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI), Minneapolis is the sixth most dangerous in the United States.

Murders aren’t the only thing on the rise

Official data issued by the Minneapolis administration certified that murder was not the only crime that increased last year. Other types of crimes and misdemeanors, such as assaults, robberies and thefts, break-ins, vandalism and vehicle theft also increased in the last nine months.

Drug trafficking is another crime of concern to residents and one that has Minneapolis on edge. Traffickers take advantage of the day, and not just the night, to sell drugs anywhere. Paul Johnson, a 56-year-old citizen, said "if you stop for gas, they try to sell you drugs.”