Murders and shootings increased dramatically in New York City last week, according to reports

Rise in violence coincided with increased police presence in city

A New York City police officer sits in a cruiser at a checkpoint surrounding Times Square ((2020 The Associated Press))

The number of shootings and murders in New York City last week rose dramatically, according to the authorities.

There were 13 people murdered from Monday 1 June to Sunday 7 June, compared to only five in the same period in 2019.

Additionally, 40 shootings were reported in the city during the same timeframe, which is more than any week since 2015.

There were 14 more shootings than the first week of June 2019, when 24 occurred in the city.

The violence coincided with protests last week, in opposition to police brutality against African Americans, following the death of George Floyd.

Mr Floyd died after being detained by Derek Chauvin, who at the time was a Minneapolis police officer, but has now been charged with second degree murder and manslaughter.

The protests started in Minneapolis, but quickly spread to Chicago and New York, among cities in every state in the US.

Police have clashed with protesters all over the US, and some officers have been filmed using excessive force, while a minority of civilians have engaged in looting.

Police sources told the New York Post, that at least one shooting was linked to looting, amid the protests.