Murders and culpable homicides rise by 10% in Scotland, Scottish Government report reveals

The number of murders and culpable homicide victims in Scotland has risen by 10%, a report has revealed.

The latest official homicide statistics, published by the Scottish Government, show 57 people were killed in 2023-24, which is an increase of five from the previous year.

Homicide includes victims of murder or culpable homicide, which is when someone is killed without intent.

Despite the increase in homicide victims the Government said 2023-2024 was the third lowest since comparable records began in 1976.

The number of homicide victims has shown a downward trend since 2004, but the new figures suggest the rate of the decline has slowed over the past decade.

The report found that 44 of the victims were men, and 13 were women.

The number of male victims increased by five, whilst the number of female victims remained constant.

In 46 of the homicide cases in Scotland, the victim and main accused knew each other.

The study found that over the past ten years, women were more likely to be killed by a partner or ex-partner whereas men were more likely to be killed by an acquaintance.

Glasgow City had ten homicide victims, which was the highest for any region in Scotland.

The city accounted for 18% of the country’s homicides despite only making up 12% of the population.

The report noted that Glasgow City has seen a faster decline in homicides than in Scotland as a whole in the last 20 years.

It said that from 2019 there have been 47 homicides in the city which highlighted a 71% reduction compared to the 162 victims for the five year period from 2004.

The report investigated the method of killing used in homicide cases over the year, and found that the most common method was a sharp instrument like a knife.

It also found that 33 victims were killed because of drug related issues, and two victims were killed by shooting.

Victims between the ages of 16 and 20 saw the largest decrease over two decades with 125 victims in this age range from 2004 to 2009 dropping to 29 between 2019 and 2024.

The figures also showed that nine children under the age of 16 were among the 57 homicide victims in Scotland, four of which were killed by parents.