Minneapolis nears record homicide count for 2021

MINNEAPOLIS – Minneapolis has recorded the highest number of homicides in over 20 years amid a nationwide spike in violent crime.

The city has reported 96 homicides this year. It’s just one shy of a record set in 1995, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported. Homicides this year doubled from the count in 2019 as the city’s most diverse and low-income neighborhoods saw the bulk of the violence.

Criminologists attribute the recent nationwide violent crime to a confluence of factors, including the coronavirus pandemic, as well as conflicts over politics and race. Shooting and armed carjacking are also on the rise.

(For copyright information, check with the distributor of this item, Star Tribune.)