Aspects of the crime geography of Calabar urban

Abstract

The main focus of this research is to established, through an objective empirical process, the spatial pattern and trend with regards to the crime geography of Calabar Urban. Six, of the Police posts in the town, two from each of the three zones into which the town has been sub-divided became the sample points. The crime register at each of the selected stations became the sample frame from which numerical statistical information on criminal assault and theft cases were purposely collected. The characteristic pattern of this societal menace in Calabar urban is highest in Zone A or predominantly Calabar South Local Government Area declining very sharply away from it in direct response to declining population density and income among others. These spatially different distributions are significant at (F_C > F_t = 116.64 > 3.35), 99% level of confidence for stealing; and, (F_C > F_t = 3.24 > 2.75), 95% level of confidence for criminal assault. Stealing, for the period, showed no discernable pattern other than its constant high incidence year after year; assaults, on the other hand, showed a somewhat increasing trend which when tested, wasn't significant. Poverty alleviation programmes and scientific approach to crime prevention and management, from studies such as this, greatly hold the key to effective crime reduction and control in the town.

Keywords: urban crimes, felony, city structure, misdemeanor and simple crime

Global Journal of Social Sciences Vol. 4(1&2) 2005: 49-56