Here, Berlin is still the sad leader in Germany: Hour after hour, 55 crimes are known – of which only 25 are solved in the end.
By Hildburg Bruns and Emma Neugebauer
Thanks to Corona, the new crime statistics for the past year 2021 are still good news: For the first time since 2012, the total number fell below the 500,000 mark. There are 13,158 acts per 100,000 inhabitants (see also below). Low record since the city’s reunification.
For the first time there is a statistical overview of a full pandemic year. Senator Iris Spranger (SPD) sees several developments:
►“Less was stolen!” 179,455 crimes, down almost 10 percent. The reasons: fewer major events, trade fairs, street festivals, Christmas markets, plus distance requirements, border problems for traveling suspects.
►“There was more cheating for that.” Instead of shopping, people ordered online – and often got the wrong delivery. There was also cheating with the Corona emergency aid (123 million euros in damage so far), at test centers (25 million) and with fake vaccination cards (2000 investigations).
A new form of grandchild trick is particularly perfidious: 600,000 euros were stolen from 151 elderly people with corona shock calls.
►“Drug distribution changed.” There was less dealing in parks and at train stations, instead there was more direct sales at the front door, e.g. B. by coke taxes.
►According to Spranger, the number of politically motivated violent crimes has risen sharply: a total of 1037 cases (+ 13.8%). Left-wing extremists accounted for 392, right-wing extremists for 153.
►“There were fewer break-ins.” The number of crime opportunities has decreased because the residents traveled less often and more people worked from home.
The clear-up rate has dropped to 45.3 percent, but is still the second-highest value in recent years. The number of non-German suspects was 39.4 percent.
Knives are a popular crime weapon, with dangerous blades used 2,777 times. The recorded damage increased by 420 million euros to over a billion euros – per act that makes an average of 4476 euros.
Also frightening: During the two-hour press conference by Interior Senator Spranger and Police President Slowik, two police officers were attacked on duty – statistically speaking. 8,569 were victims of a crime while on duty – an increase of 14.2 percent.
“One colleague is affected every hour, it’s devastating,” says Slowik. While officers have often been hit on patrols in the past, the scene of the crime is now more of a gathering that is mostly forbidden. “That has shifted,” says Slowik.
Senator Spranger also asserted: “I have an absolute incomprehension of the increasing aggressiveness.”
The numbers per offense in detail
Murder & Manslaughter: 100 cases, 96 percent cleared up. Suspects: 86 percent male, 43.9 percent non-German, 12.8 percent under 21 years of age
Police officers as victims: 8,569 cases while on duty, plus 1,064 affected (-14.2 percent)
Pickpocket: 13,700 cases, only 957 solved. Of those arrested, 62.9 percent are non-German and have no permanent address
burglary: 4984 cases, 476 of which resolved. A total of 1095 times in villas, 3889 times in apartments
Thefts from cars: 31,534 cases (+ 1515), more catalysts, only 4.8 percent clearance rate
Bicycle theft: 25,438 cases, of which 1,167 cases were resolved. The peak was in 2016 with 34,418
Goods Fraud: 10,816 cases, up 17.8 percent. The goods did not arrive or were of inferior quality
Public transport offenses: 4202 assaults, 435 robberies, 1842 insults, 7351 pickpockets
drug offences: 18,820 cases, mostly related to cannabis (57 percent). Cocaine smuggling (721 cases) has increased
arson: 771 cases, 170 cases solved. One in five suspects under the age of 21
Corona scam: 281 cases at test centers with damage of 25 million euros, plus 9139 procedures for corona emergency aid (damage 123 million euros), another 9100 procedures are pending
Behind every crime there is a victim
“We shouldn’t let ourselves be blinded,” warns the police union (GdP). “Behind all crimes are victims, for whom the numbers are of little help if they are personally affected and leave irreparable traces.”
What the trade unionists also make clear: the statistics do not represent all crime in the city, but are a report on the activities of the police. It only depicts the so-called bright field.
The published offense figures often depend on the respective personnel deployment, for example in the case of drug-related crime.
FDP interior expert Björn Jotzo (47) also does not rate the declining total number of cases as a success for the interior senator. “A lot depends on the reduced mobility of the population during the pandemic,” he says. “These phenomena will not last.”
