Grande Prairie has come a long way from being the crime capital of Canada. Numbers released Monday show the city’s crime rate is now ranked 14th of all places in the country with a population of 10,000 or more.
Based on data from 2017, the Crime Severity Index for the municipality was 162.8 per 100,000 residents. That’s up slightly from 156.03 in 2016, which also put it in 14th place. The Violent Crime Severity Index was also up slightly from 141.36 to 143.04, but it dropped in the rankings from 18th to 21st.
The rural Grande Prairie area is considered the 54th most dangerous place in Canada. Its Crime Severity Index was 99.57 in 2017, a significant drop from 108.89 and 43rd place in 2016. Its Violent Crime Severity Index was 81.93 last year, putting it 85th in the rankings, down from 53rd with a rate of 95.35 in 2016.
Grande Prairie was considered the most dangerous city in Canada in 2016 and 2015, based on statistics from the previous years. North Battleford has earned that title for the second year in a row, while Saskatoon has the highest reported crime rate of the country’s larger cities.
We have reached out to local RCMP for comment.