Palena

Palena (Los Lagos region) carries a high level of reported incidence — rank null of 346 communes nationally — but CEAD data reveal a declining trend that has been consistent over recent years. The 2025 figure reached 5,043.9 incidents per 100,000 inhabitants.

Palena is one of the communes that make up the Los Lagos region. Within the region, it holds regional rank null, a position that reflects its incidence level relative to other communes in the same administrative area. Regional comparisons are particularly relevant because they account for shared socioeconomic conditions, urban density patterns, and local reporting infrastructure that may influence measured incidence across the region.

The reported incidence rate of Palena in 2025 is close to the per-capita national mean computed across non-low-population communes. The difference is within a narrow margin, suggesting that the commune's reported activity broadly tracks the national level for communes of comparable data quality.

Palena's reported incidence in 2025 was approximately 23% below the per-capita mean for the Los Lagos region. Among Los Lagos communes, this places Palena on the lower side of the regional distribution.

In 2025, the leading category in Palena's reported crime profile was public-order incidents, which accounted for the largest share of total reported incidents. The second most prevalent category was crimes against persons. This composition reflects Palena's particular urban and socioeconomic characteristics. The CEAD breakdown covers seven crime families: crimes against persons, property crimes, violent robbery, public-order incidents, domestic violence, drug-related offenses, and weapons offenses. The relative weight of each category in the total rate is visible in the incidence-by-category chart above.

A useful reference point for contextualizing Palena's data is Puyehue (Los Lagos), identified as the nearest comparable commune within the same region based on reported incidence. In 2025, Puyehue recorded approximately 5,430.1 incidents per 100,000 inhabitants, compared with 5,043.9 for Palena. Because Palena has a small resident population, its rate is statistically volatile, so this comparison is offered as the nearest available reference rather than a claim of shared incidence tier. Puyehue holds national rank 135 of 346.

Note: this commune has a small resident population. As a result, the rate per 100,000 inhabitants is statistically sensitive to small variations in absolute event counts. Year-on-year fluctuations may reflect statistical volatility rather than real changes in underlying trends. This commune is excluded from national rankings for this reason. Comparisons with national or regional averages should be interpreted with this caveat in mind.

Looking at the full CEAD time series, Palena recorded 1,877.1 incidents per 100,000 inhabitants in 2005. Since then, the reported rate has increased, reaching 5,043.9 in 2025. The multi-year series is displayed in the sparkline chart above, which shows annual values from 2005 through 2025. The most recent year of partial data (if available) is shown at reduced opacity to indicate that the figure is not yet complete. Year-on-year fluctuations are normal and can reflect changes in recording practices, population estimates, or law enforcement priorities rather than changes in underlying behavior.

The data presented here are sourced from CEAD (Centro de Estudios y Análisis del Delito), the official Chilean body that compiles police-reported crime statistics. All figures represent reported incidents — actual incidence may differ due to under-reporting, which varies by crime type and territory. The 2025 rate of 5,043.9 incidents per 100,000 inhabitants for Palena reflects the most recent complete annual data available at the time of this publication. For more information on methodology and the rate-per-100,000 definition, see the methodology section.