In 2024, there were nearly 26.20homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in the country, down from a homicide rate of 26.8 a year earlier. Since 2017, when it peaked, the homicide rate in Venezuela has been decreasing year after year.

Falling homicide rate but still higher than the Latin American average The country held the fifth position for the highest homicide rate in Latin America, recording 26.2 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2024, even after experiencing a steady decrease in the rate over the years. In line with this alarming rate, the Venezuelan city of Cumana was ranked as the 11th most dangerous city in the world in 2023, reporting a rate of 62.42. Among these homicide cases, the majority, approximately 5,800, are still under investigation, while the remainder falls into categories of closed cases, those resisting authority, or have been categorized as disappearances, painting a grim picture of the challenges faced in addressing violent crime.

Corruption in Venezuela In the corruption index, which ranges from 0 representing the worst case to 100 signifying no corruption, Venezuela has earned the unfortunate distinction of being the most corrupt country in Latin America, with a meager score of 10 in 2024. Moreover, the estimated corruption control score has been steadily declining, reaching -1.69 in 2024, where lower numbers indicate a higher degree of corruption, painting a worrisome picture. To compound matters, the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing has persistently remained at a high level, recording a score of 7.59 during 2024.

Venezuela crime rate per 100K population for 2021 was 19.31, a 34.4% decline from 2020.

<ul style='margin-top:20px;'>

<li>Venezuela crime rate per 100K population for 2020 was <strong>29.43</strong>, a <strong>28.2% decline</strong> from 2019.</li>
<li>Venezuela crime rate per 100K population for 2019 was <strong>40.98</strong>, a <strong>14.58% decline</strong> from 2017.</li>
<li>Venezuela crime rate per 100K population for 2017 was <strong>47.98</strong>, a <strong>15.26% decline</strong> from 2016.</li>
</ul>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.

The number of victims of intentional homicide in Venezuela, peaked in 2014, when 19,030 victims were recorded in this South American country. The number of people murdered in Venezuela had fallen considerably by 2022, when it stood at nearly 3,500.

In 2020, the capital city Caracas ranked third in the ranking of most violent Venezuelan metropolises, with a murder rate of nearly 53 per 100,000 inhabitants. The list was headed by Cumaná with a homicide rate of 62.42.

The victimization rate in Venezuela decreased by ten percentage points (-34.48 percent) in 2023 in comparison to the previous observation. The rate thereby reached its lowest value in recent years. For more insights about the victimization rate consider different countries: In 2023, in comparison to Venezuela, the rate in the Dominican Republic was considerably higher, while it was lower in El Salvador.

The Latin American Public Opinion Project (LAPOP) is an academic institution hosted by Vanderbilt University that began with the study of democratic values in Costa Rica, but today carries out surveys in much of Latin America, Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean. In 2004, LAPOP established the AmericasBarometer as multi-country, regularly conducted survey of democratic values and behaviors in the Americas, and the first round included voting-age respondents from 11 countries. LAPOP collected opinions on major problems facing the country and community, threats to security, attitudes towards the country's political system, and trust in government institutions. Also measured were respondents' participation in community organizations, attitudes towards government critics, voting behavior, confidence in local government, and the prevalence of crime. Demographic information collected includes nationality, ethnicity, native language, age, gender, education level, occupation, religion, and whether the respondent lives in an urban or rural area.

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.

Saint Kitts and Nevis saw a murder rate of 65 per 100,000 inhabitants, making it the most dangerous country for this kind of crime worldwide as of 2023. Interestingly, El Salvador, which long had the highest global homicide rates, has dropped out of the top 20 after a high number of gang members have been incarcerated. Meanwhile, Celaya in Mexico was the most dangerous city for murders. Violent conflicts worldwide Notably, these figures do not include deaths that resulted from war or a violent conflict. While there is a persistent number of conflicts worldwide, resulting casualties are not considered murders. Partially due to this reason, homicide rates in Latin America are higher than those in Afghanistan or Syria. A different definition of murder in these circumstances could change the rate significantly in some countries. Causes of death Also noteworthy is that murders are usually not random events. In the United States, the circumstances of murders are most commonly arguments, followed by narcotics incidents and robberies. Additionally, murders are not a leading cause of death. Heart diseases, strokes and cancer pose a greater threat to life than violent crime.

On March 16th 2025, Trump's administration deported 238 alleged members of the Venezuela criminal gang Tren de Aragua to the Terrorism Confinement Center (or CECOT) prison in El Salvador. According to official data, the United States will pay around six million U.S. dollars to El Salvador to imprison around 300 deportees from the U.S. for one year. Crime in El Salvador Nayib Bukele is one of the most beloved world leaders, with an approval rate of 93 percent as of July 2024, being crowned with the highest in Latin America. This comes not without a reason, as El Salvador used to be constantly ranked as one of the most violent countries globally due to gang violence, specifically, La Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and Mara Barrio-18. After a particularly violent couple of days in March 2022, Bukele’s administration called for an Emergency state, with massive incarceration of alleged gang members. The Central American country now ranks with the lowest homicide rate in the region. One of the largest prisons in the world, not without controversy El Salvador ranks by far as the country with the highest incarceration rate in the world. As of February 2025, El Salvador's rate was 1,659 prisoners per 100,000 inhabitants, more than double when compared to Cuba – which ranks as the second place. The massive incarceration and the measures taken during the emergency state, various countries and international observers called out El Salvador for an approach lacking human rights. As the gang members were heavily mistreated and later on some of them, or their families, were charged 170 US dollars a month for food, clothing, and other services. Nonetheless, the effectiveness of such measures and with almost 90 percent of Salvadoreans feeling safer after the emergency state, Bukele secured a second office term in 2024 with more than 80 percent of the votes.

In 2024, Colima in Mexico ranked as the world's most dangerous city with a homicide rate of 140 per 100,000 inhabitants. Seven of the 10 cities with the highest murder rates worldwide are found in Mexico. The list does not include countries where war and conflict exist. Latin America dominates murder statistics Except for Mandela Bay, all the cities on the list are found in Latin America. Latin America also dominate the list of the world's most dangerous countries. Violence in Latin America is caused in great part by drug trafficking, weapons trafficking, and gang wars. Crime in South Africa Mandela Bay in South Africa is the only city outside Latin America among the 10 most dangerous cities worldwide. The country is struggling with extremely high levels of inequality, and is struggling with high levels of crime and power outages, harming the country's economy and driving more people into unemployment and poverty.

In 2024, there were approximately 12.9 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in Panama, up from 11.5 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 of Mexico, Venezuela, and Haiti, for instance.

Ce graphique présente la répartition des morts violentes au Venezuela en 2018, selon le lieu du crime. On peut observer que plus de 60 % des victimes avaient trouvé la mort dans la rue, tandis que 22 % avaient été assassinées chez elles.

In 2022, it was estimated that approximately 7.3 people were murdered every 100,000 inhabitants in Suriname. The homicide rate registered in this other South American countries such as Brazil and Venezuela exceeded by over fivefold the rate in Suriname.

A research project developed by the Trans Murder Monitoring (TMM) revealed that at least 235 trans or gender-diverse people were murdered in Latin America from October 2022 to September 2023. The highest number of victims was reported in Brazil, with 100 homicides. Mexico was the second deadliest country for trans people in Latin America, having registered 52 murders in the same period.

In 2023, Brazil registered a total of 1,463 murder cases that were classified as femicide, or the killing of a woman or girl on account of their gender. Meanwhile, the number of women killed on account of their gender in Mexico reached 852 in that same year.

In 2023, the percentage of the population aged over 18 who is very afraid of being a victim of crime in Peru increased by two percentage points (+7.14 percent) compared to 2020. In total, the percentage of population amounted to 30 percent in 2023. This increase was preceded by a declining percentage of population.For more insights about the percentage of the population aged over 18 who is very afraid of being a victim of crime consider different countries: In 2023, in comparison to Peru, the percentage of population in Venezuela was considerably lower, while it was higher in Colombia.

In 2023, the victimization rate in El Salvador decreased by six percentage points (-30 percent) compared to 2020. Therefore, the rate in El Salvador saw its lowest number in that year with 14 percent. For more insights about the victimization rate consider different countries: In 2023, in comparison to El Salvador, the rate in Venezuela was higher and in Honduras it was considerably higher.

Cette statistique-ci montre la répartition des morts violentes au Venezuela en 2018, selon le motif du crime. Cette année-là, environ la moitié des victimes vénézuéliennes avaient été tuées en résistant à l'autorité.