Some encouraging news has emerged from the most recent set of crime statistics, which showed that the number of recorded crimes in Belgium went down last year.
According to the latest statistics published by the federal police, there were 902,059 recorded crimes in Belgium in 2024 - 31,903 fewer offences than in 2023.
However, some types of crime are on the rise. Cases of cybercrime, including computer fraud, hacking and phishing, went up by 3.5% in 2024. Police recorded 64,995 cybercrime incidents in 2024, compared to 62,762 incidents in 2023. Over the past ten years, this type of crime has increased dramatically, rising by an astonishing 281.5% since 2014.
The most common types of crime in Belgium
Theft and extortion remain by far the most prevalent type of crime in Belgium. Last year, 260,638 such incidents were recorded – down 6.4% compared to 2023. The second most common type of crime was physical assault, with 88,016 recorded cases in 2024 - down 0.5% on 2023.
Fraud completes the top three, with 73,834 such crimes recorded last year, a reduction of 2.16% compared to the previous year.
Police statistics show there were 1,461 murders and attempted murders recorded in Belgium last year, the vast majority of which were attempted murders.
At the regional level, the police recorded 443,540 offences in Flanders, compared to 294,787 in Wallonia and 163,713 in Brussels.
The statistics do not, of course, take into account this year's wave of gun violence in Brussels. Over the summer, there were at least 20 reported shootings in the city, largely linked to the illegal drugs trade.
