SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO AM) - Sioux Falls Police have solved 47 of the last 48 homicides.
Captain Blaine Larsen says last week's first Sioux Falls homicide of 2015 prompted investigators to review the murder clearance rate.
Larsen says the last unsolved murder was that of Daniel Eastman in 2011. He says Eastman was found beaten and unconscious in downtown Sioux Falls. He was in a coma for awhile and when he awoke, he didn't remember anything about the incident.
Larsen says Eastman had been drinking heavily and he associated with folks of a suspicious nature and made poor witnesses.
Eastman eventually succumbed to his wounds.
Larsen says the 48 murders date back ten years.
The clearance rates of all serious crimes in Sioux Falls far outdistance the national average according to the FBI.
Larsen says burglaries and robberies are the hardest crimes to solve even in Sioux Falls. He says that's largely because robbers conceal their identity and robbers tend to commit crime with as few witnesses as possible. Crimes of opportunity.
Serious crimes include homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and stolen cars.