Violent crime in Hennepin County ticked up by 3 percent last year but remained at historic lows, according to estimates released Friday by the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office.

Overall, the office said, violent crime countywide was down by 37 percent from 2006-2012.

The FBI defines violent crime as murder, manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery and aggravated assault.

The county numbers mirror those recently released by the Minneapolis Police Department. In Minneapolis, serious crime was up for 2012, for the third consecutive year. But data showed other categories of crime decreasing. Overall, violent crime was at the second-lowest level since 1983 and only slightly higher than the recent low of 2011.

Sheriff Rich Stanek said if Minneapolis is excluded, violent crime in the county decreased by 10 percent from 2011 to 2012. When Minneapolis is included, the number is up 3 percent. Stanek said that more than half the resources from his office are focused on Minneapolis.

The county's numbers went against a national increase in violent crime, the sheriff said.

The numbers are estimates. The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension keeps the official data but doesn't release it until later this year.

ROCHELLE OLSON