I don't know that it's any comfort, but the increases in burglaries (and other crime) is not just in San Pedro. I've been hearing recently from folks in Caye Caulker, Placencia village and Corozal Town complaining about the jump in crime there as well. And of course Belize City's issues with crime are well known.
The police claim, on the other hand, that serious crime in Belize is actually down. Go figger.
Maybe it's the economy, the time of year, who knows?
I think if you go back and search the forum (use the search engine at the top right of this page) you'll find a lot of threads over the years about break-ins, home invasions and other crimes.
But most of the discussion is about property crime, not violent crime, which, despite the recent events, is still relatively rare in San Pedro and indeed in many parts of Belize, outside Belize City ... and excepting drunken choppings and family problems.
Naturally, some business people in any area don't want to let bad news about crime, or anything negative, get out if they can help it, as it can have a negative impact. Now, though, in San Pedro it looks like the situation has reached the "tipping point."
For what it's worth, based on my own experiences in Belize over the past 15 years and in interviewing several hundred expats and retirees for books on living in Belize, the consensus is a) expect to get thiefed or worse at some point, but b) you CAN do something about it -- you have to act protect yourself and your property, with a fence, big dog, security systems, caretaker, good lighting, good communications and other things.
Crime, like garbage on the beach, is one of the tradeoffs most people have to make in living in a developing country, any developing country, where there is a lot of poverty and rising expectations that can't easily be met.
There are great things and bad things about any area, including San Pedro.
--Lan Sluder