The Federal Police have just published crime statistics for the year 2023, revealing a total of 902,059 recorded criminal acts. This slight increase of 0.2% compared to 2022 indicates an overall stability of offenses. However, certain crime categories show distinct trends.
The Federal Police report for the year 2023 lists 902,059 criminal acts, marking a status quo compared to the previous year. These data come from recordings made by the Local Police and the Federal Police in the General National Data Bank (BNG). Although the overall figures remain stable, a more detailed analysis reveals notable developments in certain categories of crimes.
Slight increase in thefts and extortion
Theft and extortion offences, representing 30% of criminal acts with 271,388 incidents, saw a slight increase of 1.4% compared to 2022.
However, residential burglaries show a significant decrease of 7.7%, reaching their lowest level in history, except for the years marked by the pandemic. Attempted break-ins represent 38% of registrations in this category.
Vehicle theft figures stabilize
The number of vehicle thefts remains stable, with slight variations depending on the type of vehicle. Car thefts increased from 5,377 in 2022 to 5,727 in 2023, while motorcycle and moped thefts decreased slightly. Bicycle thefts, meanwhile, decreased by 3.6%, totaling 29,763 incidents. The implementation of the Mybike platform in April 2023, facilitating the identification of bicycles, could have contributed to this decrease.
Sharp increase in pickpocketing and bag snatching
Pickpocketing saw a substantial increase of 13.1%, reaching 27,083 incidents. This increase is particularly marked in the Brussels-Capital Region. Snatching and shoplifting also increased by 15.7% and 3.2%, respectively.
First decrease in internet fraud
After years of increase, Internet fraud recorded a decrease of 4.5% in 2023, with 40,040 incidents. This offense nevertheless remains worrying in the context of increasing digitalization. Awareness and prevention campaigns could partly explain this decrease.
Rising trend for harassment
Harassment incidents continued to increase, reaching 27,833 in 2023, an increase of 6.8% compared to the previous year. The deployment of the mobile harassment alert at the end of 2023 offers increased protection to victims of domestic violence.
The Federal Police calls for caution in interpreting the statistics, stressing that the increase in registrations may be due to various factors, such as the increased propensity of citizens to report the facts or targeted police actions. The fight against crime “remains a constant challenge for police services”, according to Annelies Verlinden, the resigning Minister of the Interior. The latter underlines the importance of continued prevention and awareness-raising efforts, particularly in the area of cybercrime, which represents a growing challenge for public security.
theft fraud crime federal police
