A total of 50 serious violent crimes were registered, compared to 81 last year. A total of 14 instances of manslaughter and murder, including attempts, were registered, compared to 29 in 2020.

"When it comes to manslaughter and murder, 2020 stood out with these figures rising, breaking the long-term downward trend. This year, such crimes are in decline again, which is definitely a good indicator," Mari-Liis Soot, head of the analysis service at the Ministry of Justice, said.

The number of minor violent crimes also decreased. Instances of physical abuse registered in the first six months of 2021 numbered 2,882, compared to 3,034 the year before. Aggravated breach of public order was registered on 110 occasions in the first half of the year, compared to 172 occasions a year ago.

The decrease in traffic offenses is positive. Deliberate violation of traffic rules resulted in serious traffic accidents on 12 occasions, compared to 24 a year ago. Altogether 1,183 drunk driving crimes were registered, which is 228 less than in the same period last year.

Thefts accounted for the largest share of crimes, 27 percent of registered crimes. There were 3,449 thefts registered, which is 78 more than last year.

The number of scams and online scams has increased significantly. While last year, 400 scams were registered in the first half of the year, this year the figure was 577. The number of online scams increased even more -- 352 computer scams were registered in the first half of last year, while the number registered this year was 678. The number of online crimes has been growing for years.

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