VALLETTA, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- The number of reported cases of money laundering in Malta increased by 94 percent in 2018, according to a report presented here on Friday.
The "Reported Crime Annual Report 2018", which was presented by Malta's Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia and criminologist Savior Formosa, also said that the number of reported cases of fraud in Malta have increased by 31 percent over the past year.
Farrugia said the police force's economic crimes unit would be strengthened following the rise in reported cases of financial crime.
Although the total number of criminal cases in Malta decreased by 7 percent overall in 2018, computer-related crimes increased by 20 percent, with most cases relating to password disclosure, unauthorized access and possession of data.
The murder rate in Malta was also lower than in previous years, and the measures to tackle pick pocketing appeared to have had a positive effect, with the rate of this type of crime declining by 46 percent in 2018. The number of beach theft cases also decreased by 46 percent to the lowest level in 14 years.
