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Europe

From cyberbullying in Greece to theft in Spain, the map of juvenile crime in Europe

Reports are increasing in some EU countries. Here are the most widespread crimes

by Michela Finizio

19 July 2024

3' min read

Italy
Francia
Spagna
Grecia
Bulgaria

3' min read

Juvenile crime is emerging as a social emergency in several European countries. In Italy, according to the latest data of the Criminal Analysis Service of the Department of Public Security, more than 31,000 juveniles were reported in 2023, 51.4 per cent of whom were of foreign origin. Below is a map of the main crimes, country by country.

Italy

Reports up 11% on 2019

In 2023, there were 31,173 reports of minors registered by the Criminal Analysis Service of the Department of Public Security. More than half (51.4%) were minors of foreign origin. The number is lower than in the previous year - when there were 32,522 under-18s reported - but it is up 11% compared to 2019 and thus to pre Covid. Going back in time to find similar levels of reporting goes back to 2015 when there were 32,566 children reported but the incidence of foreign-born citizens was lower (37%). Most of the reported offenders live in large urban areas: 39.6 per cent of the children reported in 2023 between 14 and 17 years of age live in metropolitan cities and 47 per cent of the arrests for robbery occur in these urban areas.

Francia

The banlieue knot

The latest chapter of violent episodes in the banlieues - the French suburbs with a high rate of immigration and poverty - dates back to 4 April when 15-year-old Shamseddine was beaten and killed in Viry-Châtillon, in the capital's banlieue, by four teenagers. The episode had led President Macron to launch a public consultation on the issues of violence and crime among minors. In the meantime, some cities have chosen to apply an evening/night curfew for teenagers that should prevent an increase in violence. Among them is Nice, which since 1 May has activated a curfew for under-13s.

Spagna

Rise in convictions

In 2022, 25,822 crimes committed by minors were recorded in Spain, down 2% from the previous year. The most common offences were injury (31.4% of the total), robbery (17.5%) and threats (8.6%). Moving from complaints to sentencing, in Spain in 2022 there were 14,026 minors (aged 14 to 17) sentenced, an increase of 3.2% on 2021, which is much lower than the increase in adults sentenced (+9.4%). However, convictions for sexual offences committed by minors increased at an even higher rate: 501 in 2022, 14.1% more than the previous year. The Madrid government also has the problem of criminal gangs on its mind: since 2014 there has been a plan to combat these groups and an update is being studied.

Grecia

Cyberbullying quadrupled.

From Thessaloniki to Volos, beatings and robberies committed by minors against their peers increasingly occupy the pages of newspapers (and websites) in Greece. Episodes whose unprecedented brutality is emphasised locally. According to research by the Kostas Stefanis Research University Institute of Mental Health, Neurosciences and Precision Medicine, although over the past eight years (2014-2022) the percentage of teenagers reporting recent involvement in violence has reached its lowest point, the rate of cyberbullying and digital attacks quadrupled between pre- and post-Covid (2018-2022). One in four teenagers reported having been involved in bullying at school in the two months prior to the survey.

Bulgaria

Theft is the main crime.

According to official statistics in Bulgaria there is a slight increase in offences committed by minors: if in 2021 there were 5,120 offences recorded, of which 1,292 were committed by under-14s and 3.828 attributable to teenagers between 14 and 17 years old, in 2022 the numbers rose to 1,394 for crimes committed by under-14s and 4,064 for under-18s, before falling again: in 2023 they were back down to 5,110 (1,287 crimes by under-14s and 3,823 under-18s). The most widespread crime in these age groups is theft. This type of criminal behaviour can also be linked to the share of violence committed against children: according to a Unicef study dated 2021, at least one third of children have been victims of some form of physical abuse.

* this article is part of the Pulse project. Contributors: Francesca Barca (VoxEurope), Samuil Dimitrov (Mediapool.bg); Ana Somavilla (El Confidencial); Dina Daskalopolou (Efsyn).

Michela Finiziovice caposervizio
Luogo: Milano
Lingue parlate: Italiano e inglese
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