IELTS Writing Task 1 #162
The difference between theft, robbery and burglary
To put it simply, someone is guilty of robbery if he steals from a person using force or makes them think force will be used. Theft means taking someone’s property but does not involve the use of force. Burglary means illegally entering a property in order to steal property from it.
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The chart below shows the changes that took place in three different areas of crime in Panama City from 2010 to 2019.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Model answer
This graph illustrates how crime rates altered in Panama City during the period 2010-2019. We can see immediately that the greatest change occurred in the number of burglaries, while incidents of theft remained low but steady.
In 2010, we can see that burglary was the most common crime, with approximately 3,400 reported cases. The figure rose to around 3,700 in 2011, but then there was a downward trend until 2015. At this point the figure stood at just over 1,000 incidents. This rose slightly in 2016, then continued to fluctuate for the remaining period.
In 2010, the number of cars being stolen stood at around 2,800 and followed a similar trend to burglary until 2013. At this point the number rose, standing at around 2,200 in 2014. There was a marginal decrease in the following year, but from then on, the trend was generally upwards.
Finally, robbery has always been a fairly minor problem for Panama City. The number of offences committed changed little over nine years. It is interesting to note that the figure of approximately 700 in 2010 is the same figure for 2019.
(185 words)