BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Violent and serious crime in Buffalo is trending down over the last five years, according to the latest Buffalo Police Department statistics, but not every business owner is feeling the relief.
Peter Flanagan has owned and operated Pete's Place, a popular lunchtime spot in downtown Buffalo, for 9 years. He says petty theft at his business "is on the skyrocket."
He told me people steal lunch items from his store, such as a bottle of soda, daily.
"People with money in their pockets, well-dressed business people think that it's perfectly acceptable to take small items," Flanagan said. "There's no consequence. You know, you're not gonna go to jail for a $2 pop. But $2 a pop 10 times a day adds up."
BPD data shows part one crime is trending down in the city over five years. Those are crimes such as homicide, rape, burglary, aggravated assault and motor vehicle theft. But the BPD's stats also back Flanagan's experience: larceny has seen a slight increase of 14% over five years. BPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Langdon says opportunistic crimes can be tough to investigate.
"It's hard to solve and it can be an 'at-the-moment' type of crime where it happens and the person grabs whatever they take, and they're gone," Langdon said. "We gotta go door to door to get video footage and things like that, so it's a little more labor intensive."
Flanagan says he has called the police about the shoplifting in his store, but feels they can only do so much.
"They will come and make a report and that's about it," Flanagan said.
WATCH: Violent crime drops in Buffalo but business owners say petty theft is on the rise
On the other end of the spectrum, people being killed due to gun violence has seen the biggest drop, with a 60% decrease compared to this time last year. Langdon says that progress takes a three-pronged approach: proactive patrols, detective intelligence work, and partnerships with state and federal agencies.
That includes targeting illegal gun trafficking.
"So targeting and investigating the people who are likely to be buying guns and bringing them up here illegally from down south," Langdon said.
Langdon says community cooperation has also been a critical factor in the department's success.
"The help from the community that we're getting. The community seems to be getting a lot more involved in assisting us and giving us more information than we've had in the past," Langdon said. "We can't do without them and they can't do without us."
That help is contributing to the BPD's improving clearance rates for shootings - that's the percentage of reported shooting crimes the police solve, with 2025 seeing a big jump compared to the previous year.
Shootings clearance rate:
- 2024 - 26.9%
- 2025 - 45%
- 2026 YTD - 50%
The BPD says it plans to publish part one crime data every month going forward.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
