US President Donald Trump has stepped up his criticism of the security situation in Washington, D.C., claiming that the murder rate in the US capital is higher than that of some Latin American capitals such as Bogota, Mexico City and Lima, CNN reported.

During a press conference on Monday, Trump announced that he would place the capital's police department "under direct federal control" and deploy 800 National Guard troops in an attempt to "regain control of the city."

"Today, the murder rate in Washington is higher than Bogota, Colombia; Mexico City or some of the places that are said to be the worst places on Earth. It's much higher," Trump said.

Trump said the decision to “liberate” Washington was part of a broader effort to “take back control” of cities he said were at risk of violence.

“Everything is double or triple, so do you want to live in places like that? I don’t think so,” the president said, citing the fact that Washington has surpassed Latin American cities like Brazil, Panama City and San Jose in homicide rates.

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser called Trump’s decision to place the capital’s police department under federal control and deploy the National Guard “troubling and unprecedented.” While she said she was not entirely surprised, she warned at a news conference that she would not “minimize the erosion of autonomy” for the city.

Bowser also assured residents that the city continues to operate “in a way that citizens can be proud of” and has met with Attorney General Pam Bondi, who, under the executive order, will have the authority delegated by Trump to coordinate with the city. The mayor also clarified that “nothing has changed” in the Metropolitan Police Department’s organizational chart.

What do the numbers show?

Trump based his statements on a 2024 chart showing that Washington had a homicide rate of 27.5 per 100,000 residents, which he said puts the city above Bogota, Colombia (15), Panama City, Panama (15), San Jose, Costa Rica (13), Mexico City, Mexico (10), Lima, Peru (7.7), and Brasilia, Brazil (6.8). Official statistics for all of these cities, obtained from organizations such as Mexico’s INEGI, the Panamanian prosecutor’s office, and the government of the capital of Brazil, among others, seem to support Trump’s claim: Washington has indeed surpassed several Latin American capitals in homicide rates per 100,000 residents in recent years, although that is just one of many other indicators of crime.

However, the latest official data paints a more nuanced picture.

According to an analysis by CNN journalist Daniel Dale, crime in Washington has declined significantly since a peak in 2023, when 274 murders were recorded, the highest number in more than two decades. I BGNES