Norway: Sharp rise in violent crime

[frigidmagi]

BBC

Justice Minister Knut Storberget is among those worried by a double-digit increase in violent crime so far this year.
Justice Minister Knut Storberget from the Labour Party promised more resources to the police, to help them deal with a rising crime rate.

Storberget and Police Director Ingelin Killengreen unveiled figures on Monday showing that Norwegian police have dealt with 1,460 cases of violent crime since the beginning of the year. That's up from 1,282 such cases during the same period last year, or 13.9 percent.

"We're worried about these numbers, and are watching the situation closely," Storberget said.

The number of reported rapes increased from 400 during the first half of last year to 425 this year.

Norwegian police also handled 27,298 cases of theft, up from 24,483 cases last year.

Police only managed to resolve 38 percent of all reported crimes, which Storberget admitted wasn't good enough.

He promised more resources for the police, expansion of the police DNA register, a recruiting drive for the police academy and sharper focus on gangs and human trafficking.