Violent crime in Central Jersey last year mirrored national trends — with spikes in some cities but declines or steady rates everywhere else.

Overall in New Jersey in 2016, both violent and nonviolent crimes went down, according to State Police data. The state's capital, however, saw an 11 percent rise in crime in 2016. As of August, crime in Trenton was keeping the same pace as last year.

While Trenton had the highest total crimes, it did not top our list of the towns with the highest crime rates — which measures the number of crimes per every 1,000 residents.

See which towns had the highest rates in the list below. Scroll to the end to find a searchable list of ALL municipalities that reported crime numbers last year.

Central Jersey's Top 20

For the purpose of this list, Central Jersey comprises Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth and Somerset counties. This uses 2016 data from the FBI and the New Jersey State Police.

#20 — FREEHOLD BOROUGH

Monmouth County
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Population: 11,941
— 1.8 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 0
Robbery: 8
Aggravated assaults: 14

 

#19 — HAMILTON

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Population: 88,665
— 1.8 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 1
Rape: 10
Robbery: 85
Aggravated assaults: 66

#18 — SOMERVILLE

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Population: 12,198
— 1.9 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 3
Robbery: 9
Aggravated assaults: 11

#17 — EWING

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Population: 36,435
— 2 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 2
Rape: 13
Robbery: 36
Aggravated assaults: 21

#16 — RED BANK

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Population: 12,187
— 2.1 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 2
Robbery: 13
Aggravated assaults: 10

#15 — SEA GIRT

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Population: 1,807
— 2.2 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 0
Robbery: 0
Aggravated assaults: 4

#14 — NEPTUNE CITY

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Population: 4,790
— 2.5 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 0
Robbery: 6
Aggravated assaults: 6

#13 —NORTH PLAINFIELD

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Population: 22,135
— 2.5 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 6
Robbery: 29
Aggravated assaults: 20

#12 — MONMOUTH BEACH

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Population: 3,233
— 2.5 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 1
Robbery: 2
Aggravated assaults: 5

#11 — BELMAR

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Population: 5,694
— 2.8 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 1
Robbery: 3
Aggravated assaults: 12

#10 — LAKE COMO

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Population: 1,718
— 2.9 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 1
Robbery: 0
Aggravated assaults: 4

#9 — KEANSBURG

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Population: 9,828
— 3.1 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 1
Robbery: 13
Aggravated assaults: 16

#8 — KEYPORT

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Population: 7,126
— 3.2 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 0
Robbery: 7
Aggravated assaults: 16

#7 — EATONTOWN

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Population: 12,264
— 3.2 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 3
Robbery: 17
Aggravated assaults: 19

#6 — LONG BRANCH

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Population: 30,959
— 3.5 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 1
Rape: 13
Robbery: 37
Aggravated assaults: 56

#5 — PERTH AMBOY

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Population: 52,767
— 4 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 0
Rape: 7
Robbery: 68
Aggravated assaults: 135

#4 — NEPTUNE TOWNSHIP

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Population: 27,505
— 5.7 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 3
Rape: 5
Robbery: 64
Aggravated assaults: 86

#3 — NEW BRUNSWICK

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Population: 57,158
— 6.9 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 1
Rape: 38
Robbery: 211
Aggravated assaults: 142

#2 — TRENTON

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Population: 83,644
— 13.5 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 21
Rape: 59
Robbery: 427
Aggravated assaults: 620

#1 — ASBURY PARK

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Population: 15,757
— 14.2 violent crimes per 1,000
Homicides: 2
Rape: 7
Robbery: 101
Aggravated assaults: 113

2016 violent crimes in NJ

Sergio Bichao is deputy digital editor at New Jersey 101.5. Send him news tips: Call 609-359-5348 or email sergio.bichao@townsquaremedia.com.

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