The number of homicides in Nunavut climbed to six in 2017 compared to just one in 2016, but the Yukon, at eight, was the territory with the most homicides last year.
Pixabay photo
There were two recorded killings in the NWT in 2017, according to data released by Statistics Canada on Wednesday.
Nunavut’s six homicides were the most in the past several years, eclipsing the five killings recorded in 2012.
The homicide rate in Nunavut, with its relatively small population under 38,000 residence in 2017, stood at 15.79, trailing only the Yukon nationally, which came in at 20.8. The rate is based on homicides per 100,000, so it is projected in the three territories, which all have poulations well below that figure.
Across Canada, homicides accounted for 660 deaths in 2017, 48 more than 2016, according to Statisics Canada. Firearm-related deaths rose 18 per cent year over year, the national statistics agency reported.
Put in another context, homicides remain a relatively rare occurrence, Statistics Canada noted. Killings represented less than 0.2 per cent of all police-reported violent Criminal Code offences nationally in 2017.