In 2021, there were approximately 11.3 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in Panama, up from 9.6 a year earlier. In 2014, the murder rate stood at 15 victims per 100,000 citizens, the highest level registered in the indicated period. Overall, Panama's homicide rates were still below those from Mexico, Venezuela, and Haiti, for instance.

In 2023, the topmost crime in Panamá was domestic violence, with 23,032 registered cases, followed by corruption and thefts, with 15,472 cases each.

In 2023, at least 556 people were victims of homicide in Panama. This number shows a considerable increase of 55 such deaths in comparison to the previous year, when 501 murder victims were recorded. Panama is one of the Latin American countries with the lowest homicide rates.

Intentional homicides are estimates of unlawful homicides purposely inflicted as a result of domestic disputes, interpersonal violence, violent conflicts over land resources, intergang violence over turf or control, and predatory violence and killing by armed groups. Intentional homicide does not include all intentional killing; the difference is usually in the organization of the killing. Individuals or small groups usually commit homicide, whereas killing in armed conflict is usually committed by fairly cohesive groups of up to several hundred members and is thus usually excluded.

In 2024, the highest homicide rate among 22 Latin American and Caribbean countries surveyed was in Haiti, with around 62 murders committed per 100,000 inhabitants. Trinidad and Tobago came in second, with a homicide rate of 46, while Honduras ranked seventh, with 25. In the same year, the lowest rate was recorded in El Salvador, with a homicide rate of 1.9 per 100,000 inhabitants. A violence-ridden region Violence and crime are some of the most pressing problems affecting Latin American society nowadays. More than 40 of the 50 most dangerous cities in the world are located in this region, as well as one of the twenty countries with the least peace in the world according to the Global Peace Index. Despite governments’ large spending on security and high imprisonment rates, drug and weapon trafficking, organized crime, and gangs have turned violence into an epidemic that affects the whole region and a solution to this issue appears to be hardly attainable. The cost of violence in Mexico Mexico stands out as an example of the great cost that violence inflicts upon a country, since beyond claiming human lives, it also affects everyday life and has a negative impact on the economy. Mexicans have a high perceived level of insecurity, as they do not only fear becoming victims of homicide, but also of other common crimes, such as assault or rape. Such fear prevents people from performing everyday activities, for instance, going out at night, taking a taxi or going to the movies or the theater. Furthermore, the economic toll of violence in Mexico is more than considerable. For example, the cost of homicide and violent crime amounted to 2099.8 and 1778.1 billion Mexican pesos in 2023, respectively.

According to a survey carried out in 2023, between four and nine percent of respondents in Panama said that they had been asked or had to pay a bribe in different interactions with public authorities (police officers and/or government employees). Panama ranked towards the bottom among other Latin American countries in this regard.