Columbus homicides and motor vehicle thefts dropped in 2024, police reveal

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – In 2024, Columbus saw its lowest number of homicides since 2019, city officials revealed at a Tuesday news conference. 

At an end-of-year presentation, the Columbus Division of Police and Mayor Andrew Ginther addressed reporters and broke down crime statistics for 2024, touting the year as a successful period for lowering crime. 

In 2024, Columbus police investigated 124 homicides, compared with 149 in 2023 – a 17% decrease. Last year was Columbus' lowest for homicides since 2019, when the city recorded 105 killings. 

Columbus’ decline in homicides this year mirrors similar trends in cities across the country, as homicides have generally decreased in America since seeing a surge during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. 

While Ginther acknowledged the “progress” Columbus has made, he said he wants to see crime decrease more in the future. 

“While we are proud we know this is not the time to become complacent and over-confident,” Ginther said. “I want us to be the safest big city in America.”

Ginther stated $744 million set aside in the 2025 city budget for improving “neighborhood safety" -- which includes hiring 180 new Columbus police officers -- will help achieve this goal. 

Columbus police solved 76% of homicides in 2024, 1% more than 2023, with Ginther giving credit to the public for calling law enforcement with information about local crimes. 

“We’ve had more tips and information shared with police from the community than ever before,” Ginther said.

Of the 124 homicides, approximately 31% of victims were under 21 years old, along with 50% of suspects. Other notable statistics police shared include that about 84% of homicides involved a gun and 18% were domestic violence-related.

Homicide was not the only crime officers saw a decrease of in 2024. Police said motor vehicle thefts “significantly” dwindled. In 2024, police saw 5,823 motor vehicle thefts, compared with 10,660, in 2023, representing a 45% drop. Police pointed to nontheft devices and software updates of Kias and Hyundais as potential reasons for the sharp decline. 

Additionally, the number of felonious assaults lessened in 2024, when police saw 1,188 incidents compared with 1,363 the previous year – a 25% decrease. Rape was another crime that decreased, dropping about 6%, from 1,223 recorded incidents in 2023 to 1,142 in 2024. 

An outlying crime that saw an increase in 2024 was robberies, with 1,503 incidents compared with 1,415 in 2023. Additionally, felony domestic violence incidents also rose to 825 in 2024 compared with 733 the previous year. However, police noted a new law passed in April 2023 that made strangulation a felony changed how the department counted these incidents, contributing to the increase. 

Police also said 3,248 illegal firearms were also taken off the streets last year, including ghost guns, or homemade firearms that can be made with a 3D printer. This marks a slight decrease from 3,693 in 2023. 

While Columbus police recently voluntarily revealed they underreported crime data for over a decade to the state and Federal Bureau of Investigation due to an unnoticed system error, the department said data pulled directly from its system was unaffected and remained accurate.