The cost of crime in Hong Kong? HK$380 billion, City University study shows
Research funded by Correctional Services Department quantifies social cost of crime in city
The cost of crime is hitting Hong Kong taxpayers hard – at least HK$380 billion from 2012 to 2016, according to the first study to put a price tag on crime in the city.
The study, funded by the Correctional Services Department (CSD), took into account legal procedures, rehabilitation and crime prevention measures in calculating the cost. It also found that a drop in the reoffending rate among former inmates had saved the city an estimated HK$74.3 billion in potential costs over the same five-year period.
“This is highly likely the first such research in Asia,” said lead researcher Professor Eric Chui Wing-hong from City University.
Starting from August last year, the university team spent a year surveying 897 inmates and 91 professionals from non-governmental organisations. Researchers also interviewed more than 1,300 residents on the phone.
They estimated that each crime committed in the city cost society about HK$239,000. But Chui noted that a 2005 Census and Statistics Department study found that the number of crime victims was 4.6 times the number of people arrested.
Taking this into consideration, as well as the total of 343,666 crimes reported over the past five years, they arrived at a total cost of HK$380 billion for that period.