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Fraud shows biggest rise in Q2 crime stats

Official statistics show that recorded crimes linked to fraud and burglary rose in the year to the end of June 2024, but there were falls in the number of homicides and sexual offences.

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) said fraud and related offences rose by just over 20% to 12,643.

Theft was up 8% to 76,501, which the CSO said was the highest recorded in the five-year period since 2020.  Almost half of crimes in this category involved theft from a shop.

Burglaries below 2020 level

Offences linked to burglary were up by 9% over the 12-month period, but the CSO points out that the figure of 9,858 incidents recorded was still more than 30% lower than the number recorded at the onset of the COVID pandemic.

Offences involving robbery, extortion, and hijacking increased by 8%, while those linked to weapons and explosives were also up 8%.

Homicides were down 15%, however, while sexual offences fell by 12% and controlled-drug offences were 7% lower.

Assault victims

The overall number of those recorded as victims of attempts or threats to murder, assaults, harassments, and related offences fell by 3% to 5,875 incidents.

Nearly six in ten (58%) victims were male in Q2 2024, compared with just over four in ten (42%) for female victims.

The figures show that offences linked to fraud, burglary, robbery, and theft rose across all garda regions during the 12-month period.

Controlled-drugs offences fell in all areas, as did offences against Government, justice procedures, and organisation of crime. The latter category covers offences committed while in custody, and breaches of court orders.

The CSO lifted the ‘under reservation’ designation from crime figures disseminated after Q1 2023, following better quality control assurances for An Garda Síochána data.