Crime in Switzerland
Crime in Switzerland is combated mainly by cantonal police. The Federal Office of Police investigates organised crime, money laundering and terrorism.
Crime by type
Homicide
In 2016, there were 187 attempted and 45 completed homicides, for a homicide rate of 0.50 per 100,000 population. Of the 232 cases, 123 were committed with bladed weapons, 47 with firearms and 30 unarmed. Out of 217 identified suspects, 187 were male and 30 female; 115 (53%) were foreigners (62 foreigners with permanent residence, and 63 foreigners without permanent residence, including asylum seekers) and 102 (47%) were Swiss citizens. 19 cases (42%) of completed and 52 cases (28%) of attempted homicide were classed as domestic violence.[1]
Corruption
The Transparency International Global Corruption Perception Index 2013 score for Switzerland is 86 (out of 100) and is the 5th best (out of 175) worldwide.[2]
Crime statistics
In Switzerland, the police registered a total of 526,066 offenses under the Criminal Code in 2014 (-9% compared with previous year), of which were 186,708 or 35.5% cases of thefts (excluding vehicles, -14%), and 47,762 or 9% cases of thefts of vehicles (including bicycles, +8%), 41 killings (-28%) and 132 attempted murders (-13%). There were 556 cases of rape (-3%). Offenses against the Narcotics Act decreased by 16.8% to 80,986. Offenses against the Federal Act on Foreign Nationals decreased by 4.7% to a total of 39,544.[1]
In 2014, 110,124 adults were convicted, of which 55,240 (50%) were convicted according to traffic regulation offences, 6,540 (+1.6%) for trafficking in narcotic substances, and 17,882 (-7.2%) for offenses against the Federal Act on Foreign Nationals.[3] 83,014 or 83.4% of adult convicted people are male, and 42,289 or 42.5% of them Swiss citizens.[4] In the same year, 11,484 minors (78% of them male, 68% of them of Swiss nationality, 64.2% aged either 16 or 17) were convicted.[4]
Convictions for infliction of bodily harm have steadily increased throughout the 1990s and 2000s, with 23 convictions for serious injury and 831 for light injury in 1990 as opposed to 78 and 2,342, respectively, in 2005. Convictions for rape have also slightly increased, fluctuating between 61 and 100 cases per year in the period 1985 to 1995, but between 100 and 113 cases in the period 2000 to 2005. Consistent with these trends, convictions for threats or violence directed against officials has consistently risen in the same period, from 348 in 1990 to 891 in 2003.[5][6]
Types of convictions
The number of convicted persons is given in the following tables.[7] Each class of crime references the relevant section of the Strafgesetzbuch (Criminal Code, abbreviated as StGB in German), or Betäubungsmittelgesetz (abbr. BetmG, Narcotics Act), or the Strassenverkehrsgesetz (abbr. SVG, Swiss Traffic Regulations).
| Year | Total Convicted Adults (StGB only) | Homicide (Art. 111,112,113,116 StGB) | Serious Bodily Injury (Art. 122 StGB) | Minor Bodily Injury (Art. 123 StGB) | Sexual Contact with Children (Art. 187 StGB) | Rape (Art. 190 StGB) | Theft (Art. 139 StGB) | Robbery (Art. 140 StGB) | Receiving Stolen Goods (Art. 160 StGB) | Embezzlement (Art. 138 StGB) | Fraud (Art. 146 StGB) | Narcotics Possession | Major Violation of Traffic Laws (Art. 90 Abs. 1&2 SVG) | Impaired Driving (Art. 91 SVG) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 26,199 | 105 | 95 | 2,439 | 416 | 110 | 5,967 | 497 | 1,249 | 906 | 1,469 | 5,510 | 22,015 | 16,466 |
| 2006 | 26,583 | 116 | 105 | 2,537 | 388 | 135 | 5,933 | 565 | 1,186 | 876 | 1,516 | 5,403 | 21,535 | 21,058 |
| 2007 | 24,265 | 105 | 94 | 2,262 | 386 | 139 | 5,502 | 524 | 930 | 805 | 1,597 | 5,090 | 21,294 | 20,108 |
| 2008 | 26,327 | 107 | 134 | 2,632 | 412 | 135 | 5,756 | 525 | 909 | 854 | 1,660 | 5,387 | 25,265 | 20,600 |
| 2009 | 27,727 | 103 | 129 | 2,655 | 388 | 129 | 6,449 | 533 | 941 | 859 | 1,566 | 5,533 | 25,557 | 19,711 |
| 2010 | 28,691 | 94 | 149 | 2,677 | 334 | 128 | 6,659 | 593 | 905 | 784 | 1,750 | 6,125 | 25,983 | 20,591 |
| 2011 | 29,128 | 82 | 127 | 2,721 | 274 | 86 | 6,950 | 442 | 1,007 | 716 | 1,767 | 4,710 | 23,590 | 18,882 |
| 2012 | 33,925 | 116 | 179 | 2,845 | 293 | 108 | 8,936 | 511 | 1,332 | 745 | 1,971 | 5,734 | 22,906 | 18,396 |
| 2013 | 35,325 | 114 | 178 | 2,843 | 317 | 98 | 9,491 | 654 | 1,433 | 670 | 2,307 | 6,087 | 22,277 | 17,465 |
| 2014 | 33,995 | 125 | 223 | 2,728 | 315 | 104 | 8,499 | 559 | 1,140 | 683 | 2,233 | 6,314 | 24,298 | 17,164 |
| 2015a | 31,560 | 91 | 210 | 2,409 | 312 | 81 | 7,230 | 462 | 909 | 637 | 2,278 | 6,545 | 22,946 | 16,368 |
- ^a 2015 conviction numbers may not include convictions overturned on appeal.
- ^ Due to privacy protection laws some convictions are not included.
| Year | Total Convicted Minors (StGB only) | Homicide (Art. 111,112,113,116 StGB) | Serious Bodily Injury (Art. 122 StGB) | Minor Bodily Injury (Art. 123 StGB) | Sexual Contact with Children (Art. 187 StGB) | Rape (Art. 190 StGB) | Theft (Art. 139 StGB) | Robbery (Art. 140 StGB) | Receiving Stolen Goods (Art. 160 StGB) | Embezzlement (Art. 138 StGB) | Fraud (Art. 146 StGB) | Narcotics Possession | Major Violation of Traffic Laws (Art. 90 Abs. 1&2 SVG) | Impaired Driving (Art. 91 SVG) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 7,580 | 7 | 10 | 634 | 73 | 14 | 3,528 | 375 | 400 | 34 | 65 | 918 | 124 | 180 |
| 2006 | 7,769 | 7 | 22 | 644 | 118 | 19 | 3,418 | 330 | 390 | 35 | 51 | 1,019 | 126 | 189 |
| 2007 | 6,910 | 6 | 21 | 699 | 101 | 19 | 2,189 | 285 | 285 | 21 | 47 | 680 | 116 | 141 |
| 2008 | 6,975 | 4 | 24 | 688 | 80 | 17 | 1,998 | 334 | 272 | 17 | 57 | 560 | 101 | 125 |
| 2009 | 6,931 | 6 | 24 | 665 | 73 | 5 | 2,033 | 365 | 311 | 19 | 57 | 600 | 142 | 105 |
| 2010 | 7,613 | 13 | 36 | 770 | 71 | 17 | 2,410 | 413 | 242 | 19 | 51 | 565 | 119 | 141 |
| 2011 | 5,427 | 2 | 31 | 553 | 65 | 5 | 1,585 | 256 | 153 | 10 | 49 | 507 | 138 | 152 |
| 2012 | 5,070 | 2 | 34 | 476 | 71 | 8 | 1,620 | 303 | 164 | 25 | 56 | 554 | 74 | 124 |
| 2013 | 5,199 | 3 | 32 | 407 | 75 | 21 | 1,666 | 325 | 166 | 27 | 90 | 693 | 72 | 95 |
| 2014 | 4,911 | 3 | 33 | 392 | 66 | 9 | 1,387 | 240 | 162 | 25 | 70 | 832 | 86 | 126 |
| 2015a | 4,457 | 4 | 27 | 341 | 87 | 4 | 1,327 | 197 | 146 | 18 | 73 | 971 | 114 | 91 |
- ^a 2015 conviction numbers may not include convictions overturned on appeal.
- ^ Due to privacy protection laws some convictions are not included.
Historic conviction rates
The historic adult conviction rates are given in the following chart:[7]
| Year | Total Adult Convictions | Criminal Convictions | Narcotics Convictions | Traffic Convictions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Male | Swiss | Total | Male | Swiss | Total | Male | Swiss | ||
| 1985 | 46,252 | 20,272 | 81.1% | 66.8% | 3,855 | 81.3% | 69.9% | 22,125 | 89.6% | 74.5% |
| 1990 | 52,030 | 19,810 | 80.2% | 57.1% | 4,176 | 81.8% | 61.4% | 28,044 | 88.5% | 67.2% |
| 1995 | 57,478 | 17,824 | 83.3% | 55.0% | 5,442 | 84.1% | 53.7% | 34,212 | 86.5% | 63.3% |
| 2000 | 68,654 | 20,614 | 85.2% | 49.5% | 6,798 | 70.7% | 34.6% | 41,242 | 85.0% | 60.3% |
| 2005 | 80,484 | 26,199 | 84.7% | 49.7% | 6,847 | 71.6% | 33.3% | 47,438 | 84.0% | 55.5% |
| 2006 | 85,477 | 26,583 | 84.8% | 50.2% | 6,792 | 70.1% | 34.7% | 52,102 | 83.7% | 54.8% |
| 2007 | 80,299 | 24,265 | 85.0% | 51.3% | 6,051 | 74.4% | 35.3% | 49,983 | 84.4% | 53.9% |
| 2008 | 88,147 | 26,327 | 84.5% | 51.0% | 6,240 | 77.2% | 36.8% | 55,580 | 83.5% | 52.6% |
| 2009 | 89,542 | 27,727 | 84.7% | 48.5% | 6,430 | 76.8% | 34.8% | 55,385 | 83.3% | 52.4% |
| 2010 | 93,187 | 28,691 | 84.0% | 47.4% | 7,006 | 78.7% | 33.7% | 57,490 | 83.0% | 51.6% |
| 2011 | 87,222 | 29,128 | 83.5% | 44.9% | 5,401 | 78.2% | 32.6% | 52,693 | 83.3% | 50.6% |
| 2012 | 95,702 | 33,925 | 83.8% | 41.5% | 6,562 | 80.0% | 30.6% | 55,215 | 82.0% | 50.3% |
| 2013 | 97,706 | 35,325 | 83.3% | 40.3% | 7,141 | 77.5% | 28.9% | 55,240 | 81.6% | 48.8% |
| 2014a | 98,582 | 32,911 | 82.6% | 41.3% | 7,392 | 76.2% | 30.4% | 58,279 | 80.4% | 48.1% |
- ^a 2014 conviction numbers may not include convictions overturned on appeal.
Age at conviction
The age of the individuals at the time of their convictions is given in this chart:[7]
| Year | 18-19 | 20-24 | 25-29 | 30-34 | 35-39 | 40-44 | 45-49 | 50-59 | 60-69 | 70+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 7.9% | 26.8% | 18.6% | 13.6% | 10.4% | 7.7% | 5.4% | 6.4% | 2.5% | 0.7% |
| 1990 | 6.6% | 26.4% | 20.7% | 14.5% | 9.9% | 7.5% | 5.4% | 6.1% | 2.2% | 0.7% |
| 1995 | 5.4% | 21.4% | 20.8% | 15.5% | 11.5% | 8.6% | 6.5% | 7.1% | 2.5% | 0.8% |
| 2000 | 6.5% | 19.3% | 17.1% | 15.5% | 12.5% | 9.7% | 7.2% | 8.3% | 3.1% | 0.9% |
| 2005 | 7.2% | 20.7% | 15.4% | 13.5% | 12.4% | 10.5% | 7.4% | 8.8% | 3.1% | 1.0% |
| 2006 | 7.4% | 20.6% | 15.0% | 12.6% | 12.0% | 10.7% | 7.9% | 9.2% | 3.6% | 1.0% |
| 2007 | 7.5% | 20.5% | 15.0% | 12.2% | 12.1% | 10.6% | 7.9% | 9.6% | 3.5% | 1.2% |
| 2008 | 6.9% | 20.7% | 15.3% | 12.2% | 11.5% | 10.1% | 8.2% | 9.7% | 3.9% | 1.4% |
| 2009 | 7.2% | 21.0% | 15.9% | 12.4% | 11.2% | 10.1% | 8.1% | 9.0% | 3.8% | 1.4% |
| 2010 | 7.1% | 20.7% | 16.1% | 12.3% | 11.1% | 10.2% | 8.0% | 9.5% | 3.7% | 1.4% |
| 2011 | 6.5% | 20.8% | 16.8% | 12.7% | 11.0% | 9.5% | 7.9% | 9.2% | 4.0% | 1.4% |
| 2012 | 6.2% | 19.9% | 17.0% | 13.7% | 10.7% | 9.5% | 7.8% | 9.3% | 4.2% | 1.7% |
| 2013 | 5.9% | 18.8% | 17.3% | 13.9% | 11.0% | 9.6% | 8.2% | 9.8% | 3.9% | 1.6% |
| 2014a | 5.4% | 17.7% | 16.6% | 14.2% | 11.4% | 9.6% | 8.6% | 10.4% | 4.4% | 1.8% |
- ^a 2014 conviction numbers may not include convictions overturned on appeal.
Prisons
At the end of 2006, 5,888 people were interned in Swiss prisons, one third of them on remand , 31% of them Swiss citizens, 69% resident foreigners or illegal immigrants; excluding remand: 36% Swiss or 32 in 100,000, 64% foreigners or 160 in 100,000.
Crime dynamics
Immigrant criminality
The crime rate among resident foreigners ("immigrant criminality") is significantly higher (by a factor 3.7 counting convictions under criminal law in 2003).[8] In 1997, there were for the first time more foreigners than Swiss among the convicts under criminal law (out of a fraction of 20.6% of the total population at the time). In 1999, the Federal Department of Justice and Police ordered a study regarding delinquency and nationality (Arbeitsgruppe "Ausländerkriminalität"), which in its final report (2001) found that a conviction rate under criminal law about 12 times higher among asylum seekers (4%), while the conviction rate among other resident foreigners was about twice as high (0.6%) compared to Swiss citizens (0.3%).[9]
| Year | Total persons convicted | Total adults convicted | Swiss adults convicted | Total non-citizen adults convicted | Percentage of Non-citizen adult convictions | B, C and Ci visa holders convicted | Other immigration status | Unknown immigration status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 27,493 | 21,101 | 10,314 | 10,787 | 51.1% | a | a | a |
| 2000 | 26,692 | 20,609 | 10,201 | 10,408 | 50.5% | a | a | a |
| 2001 | 26,804 | 20,052 | 10,233 | 9,819 | 49.0% | a | a | a |
| 2002 | 27,930 | 20,925 | 10,307 | 10,618 | 50.7% | a | a | a |
| 2003 | 30,068 | 22,966 | 11,115 | 11,851 | 51.6% | a | a | a |
| 2004 | 33,167 | 25,559 | 12,357 | 13,202 | 51.7% | a | a | a |
| 2005 | 33,778 | 26,198 | 13,025 | 13,173 | 50.3% | a | a | a |
| 2006 | 34,350 | 26,582 | 13,347 | 13,235 | 49.8% | a | a | a |
| 2007 | 31,189 | 24,280 | 12,455 | 11,825 | 48.7% | a | a | a |
| 2008 | 33,326 | 26,350 | 13,433 | 12,917 | 49.0% | 6,746 | 4,619 | 1,552 |
| 2009 | 34,683 | 27,752 | 13,452 | 14,300 | 51.5% | 7,397 | 5,410 | 1,493 |
| 2010 | 36,318 | 28,702 | 13,612 | 15,090 | 52.6% | 7,377 | 6,228 | 1,485 |
| 2011 | 34,591 | 29,162 | 13,108 | 16,054 | 55.1% | 7,317 | 7,366 | 1,371 |
| 2012 | 39,043 | 33,969 | 14,095 | 19,874 | 58.5% | 7,989 | 9,922 | 1,963 |
| 2013 | 40,726 | 35,528 | 14,309 | 21,219 | 59.7% | 8,345 | 10,568 | 2,306 |
| 2014 | 38,906 | 33,995 | 14,052 | 19,943 | 58.7% | 8,577 | 9,362 | 2,004 |
| 2015 b | 36,017 | 31,560 | 13,423 | 18,137 | 57.5% | 8,151 | 8,305 | 1,681 |
- ^a Specific immigration status not collected
- ^b Final number may change due to appeals and trials still in progress
In 2010 for the first time was a statistic published which listed delinquency by nationality (based on 2009 data). To avoid distortions due to demographic structure, only the male population aged between 18 and 34 was considered for each group. From this study it became clear that crime rate is highly correlated on the country of origin of the various migrant groups. Thus, immigrants from Germany, France and Austria had a significantly lower crime rate than Swiss citizens (60% to 80%), while immigrants from Angola, Nigeria and Algeria had a crime rate of above 600% of that of Swiss population. In between these extremes were immigrants from Former Yugoslavia, with crime rates of between 210% and 300% of the Swiss value.[11]
The full report listed 24 nationalities plus the crime rate of Swiss citizens (fixed at 100%), and the average value of all foreign citizens combined, at 160%. Commentators expressed surprise[12] at the clear geographical structure of the list, giving, in decreasing order, Africa, the Middle East and the Balkans, Southern Europe and Western and Central Europe. The Federal Statistics Office published the study with the caveat that the sizes of the groups under comparison vary considerably. For example, the net impact of a crime rate increased by 530% among 500 Angolans will still be five times smaller than a crime rate increased by 30% among 46'000 Portuguese. The country is a target for foreign criminals on account of its reputation as an affluent nation. According to British criminal Colin Blaney in his autobiography 'Undesirables', groups of English thieves have frequently targeted the nation in the past due to the fact its citizens are relatively wealthy and the fact that they are naïve about crime due to the country's low crime rate.[13]
| rank | country of origin | crime rate (relative value) | registered population (thousands)[14] | male young adults (thousands)[15] |
| 1 | Angola | 6.3 | 4.4 | 0.54 |
| 2 | Nigeria | 6.2 | 2.9 | 1.5 |
| 3 | Algeria | 6.0 | 4.1 | 1.2 |
| 4 | Côte d'Ivoire | 5.9 | 1.7 | 0.44 |
| 5 | Dominican Republic | 5.8 | 5.9 | 1.0 |
| 6 | Sri Lanka | 4.7 | 31 | 4.4 |
| 7 | Congo (Kinshasa) | 4.7 | 5.8 | 0.78 |
| 8 | Cameroon | 4.4 | 4.3 | 0.97 |
| 9 | Morocco | 4.3 | 7.4 | 1.6 |
| 10 | Tunisia | 4.2 | 6.3 | 2.1 |
| 11 | Iraq | 3.7 | 8.0 | 2.9 |
| 12 | Colombia | 3.2 | 4.2 | 0.71 |
| 13 | Turkey | 3.2 | 73 | 16 |
| 14 | the former Serbia and Montenegro (includes Kosovo) | 3.1 | 188 | 36 |
| 15 | Brazil | 3.0 | 17 | 2.5 |
| 16 | Egypt | 2.7 | 2.1 | 0.81 |
| 17 | Croatia | 2.4 | 35 | 5.0 |
| 18 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2.3 | 37 | 6.2 |
| 19 | Republic of Macedonia | 2.3 | 60 | 12 |
| total foreign national population | 1.6 | 1,714 | 330 | |
| 20 | Portugal | 1.3 | 213 | 46 |
| 21 | Italy | 1.2 | 294 | 49 |
| 22 | Switzerland | 1.0 | 6,072 | 710 |
| 23 | Austria | 0.8 | 38 | 5.8 |
| 24 | France | 0.7 | 95 | 21 |
| 25 | Germany | 0.6 | 266 | 62 |
On 28 November 2010, 53% of voters approved a new, tougher deportation law. This law, proposed by the Swiss People's Party, called for the automatic expulsion of non-Swiss offenders convicted of a number of crimes, including murder, breaking and entry and even welfare fraud. As the proposal makes deportation mandatory, it denies judges any judicial discretion over deportation. An alternative proposal, that included case by case reviews and integration measures, was rejected by 54% of voters.[16]
See also
Notes and references
- 1 2 "Polizeiliche Kriminalstatistik (PKS) - Jahresbericht 2016" (PDF) (official federal site) (in French, German, and Italian). Neuchâtel, Switzerland: Swiss Federal Statistical Office (SFO). 23 March 2015. pp. 13, 36–38. ISBN 978-3-303-19065-4. Retrieved 2017-06-10.
- ↑ "Corruption Perceptions Index 2014: Results". Neuchâtel, Switzerland: Transparency International. 2014. Retrieved 2015-08-14.
- ↑ "Kriminalität, Strafvollzug – Daten, Indikatoren; Verurteilungen: Jugendliche und Erwachsene; Verurteilungen 2013 - 2014" (official federal site) (in German and French). Neuchâtel, Switzerland: Swiss Federal Statistical Office. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 2015-08-14.
- 1 2 "Kriminalität, Strafvollzug – Daten, Indikatoren; Verurteilungen: Jugendliche und Erwachsene; Verurteilte Personen 2014" (official federal site) (in German and French). Neuchâtel, Switzerland: Swiss Federal Statistical Office. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 2015-08-14.
- ↑ Swiss Federal Statistics Office
- ↑ Swiss Federal Statistics Office
- 1 2 3 Kriminalität, Strafvollzug – Daten, Indikatoren: Verurteile Personen: Jugendliche und Erwachsene (in German) accessed 5 April 2016
- ↑ Swiss Federal Statistics Office
- ↑ Federal Department of Justice and Police study
- ↑ Swiss Federal Statistics Office - Kriminalität, Strafvollzug – Daten, Indikatoren Verurteile Personen: Jugendliche und Erwachsene accessed 3 August 2016
- ↑ Neue Statistik: Tamilen sind krimineller als Ex-Jugoslawen, Tages-Anzeiger 12 September 2010.
- ↑ so Alard du Bois-Reymond, director of the Federal Office for Migration, see e.g. Blick, 12 September 2010.
- ↑ Blaney, Colin (2014). Undesirables. John Blake. p. 158. ISBN 978-1782198970.
- ↑ data from Swiss Federal Statistics Office
- ↑ aged 20–39; data from Swiss Federal Statistics Office
- ↑ "Swiss approve foreign criminal initiative". Swissinfo. 28 November 2010. Retrieved 29 November 2010.