Covid has significantly reduced crime in Latvia

The Covid-19 pandemic has had a calming effect on Latvian society, with a significant reduction in crime over the past year. Less violence, less theft. The microclimate in families has also improved significantly - less hatred and scandals.

The statistics compiled by the State Police largely disprove the stereotypical view that people have become more cruel, depressed and evil as a result of the pandemic. In fact, the opposite has happened: society has become more cohesive and mutually supportive. The Chief of the State Police, Armands Ruks, expresses his gratitude for this. At the conference "How safe is it to live in Latvia?" he and his colleagues presented last year's crime figures and outlined current issues. For example, both crime and its persecutors are gradually moving to work in the cyber environment.

It is generally safe in Latvia

In 2021, a total of 32,820 criminal offences were recorded in the country, 15.3% less than in 2020. This is most directly due to the pandemic restrictions and lockdown, as well as the increased work of the police and other services in monitoring society. At the same time, the reduction in crime in the country is a long-term trend. By comparison, in 2011, 51,582 criminal offences were recorded in the country. So the answer to the question of whether it is safe to live in Latvia is - on the whole, yes, and it is getting safer. From a statistical point of view, the state capital Riga is also the criminal capital of the country. Around a third of all crimes are committed in Riga. Then come Daugavpils, Liepāja and Jelgava.

As the overall crime rate in the country falls, the trend remains that both the perpetrators and the victims of crime are predominantly male. Last year, 4,398 men and 3,775 women were recognized as victims of crime. 13,373 men and 2,162 women were persons subject to criminal proceedings. Last year, 7,800 men and 1,011 women were prosecuted. Among suspects, 87.2% are men and 12.8% are women. So men are a much bigger source of trouble than women and in virtually all types of crime. The exception is sham marrying foreigners to secure their entry into the European Union, which is a more female-oriented industry.

Society has become better behaved

The pandemic has primarily led to a drop in property crime, with fewer house burglaries (905), fewer robberies (263) and fewer stolen cars (600). This is because people were forced to spend much more time at home and look after their belongings. Thieves simply couldn't get to the items, hence the significant reduction in crime in this area - 28-30%. Throughout the year, there was a lot of talk in the public sphere about the terrible effects sitting at home has on people. How depressive moods grow and the microclimate of relationships in families deteriorates. The statistics show that this is nonsense. The ultimate form of depression is a suicide, but the number of suicides in the country has fallen significantly. From 131 in 2020 to 86 in 2021. There are also significantly fewer, not more, conflicts within families. Last year, 10,698 family conflicts were recorded, a decrease of 836 cases. Moreover, the threat of violence was recorded in only 4,119 cases. And violence of all kinds is on the decline in the country as a whole. There were 37 homicides last year. Last year, there were 55. 808 cases of intentional bodily harm. Most of these are drunken quarrels, and the police are quick to solve them. No contract killings were solved, and there was one last year. Someone shot dead football agent Romāns Bezzubovs. Overall, comparing criminal proceedings initiated and completed, the average solving rate for the police last year was 39.5%. So there is room for improvement and a goal to reach for.

Internet police to teach politeness

Certain types of crime have become more common in the pandemic year. These include cybercrime, internet fraud, evasion of maintenance obligations and non-compliance with access orders. Also, breaches of pandemic restrictions and defiance of police officers. Although, in the view of the Chief of Police, Latvian society deserves great praise for its ability to restrain itself and to submit to restrictions. Unlike in Germany, Austria, the Netherlands and Belgium, there were no riots. Fines of €2.6 million were levied for breaking the restrictions, with an average of €119 paid per disobedient person. A further 60 criminal proceedings have been initiated in connection with the falsification of Covid-19 certificates.

The police have to shift some of the emphasis of their work for political reasons. Fake news and so-called hate speech, discrimination and incitement to hatred are few and minor offences that are currently given enormous weight. That is why the police are going to set up a special unit, the Internet Police, to look after people on the Internet. They will be warned not to use social networks to speak hate or stir up discord. It will be a kind of politeness prevention.

Drunkards must be removed from the roads

Another area where more policing is objectively needed is road safety. Latvian society is behaving more and more decently when sitting at home, but the opposite is happening in traffic. The number of traffic accidents has risen to 19,571, and 146 people have died. The driving culture is appalling - speed limits are brazenly broken and drunk driving is rampant. Drivers, cyclists and scooter riders do it. In most cases, they have more than one and a half per mille blood alcohol. The police will therefore encourage the criminalization of drunk driving.

The police also measure the success of 2021 in terms of seized property. In the fight against drugs, the big hit was a ton of hashish, 168 kilos of cocaine in supermarket banana boxes and the closure of 39 marijuana farms and one hallucinogenic mushroom farm. In total, €85 million worth of substances were seized from the illicit market. This is only a theoretical estimate, however, as the property will be destroyed. However, the confiscation of criminal assets is a real source of profit for the State.

Last year, almost €69 million were transferred to the budget, while the total value of seized assets in 276 criminal proceedings exceeded €1.53 billion.

This will be a huge addition to the Latvian budget and a terrible loss for those owners who fail to prove the legal origin of their money.

That, in a nutshell, was the criminal year 2021 in Latvia. You can study it in more detail HERE.