Crime & Courts

Crimes in Japan Rise for 2nd Straight Year

Yomiuri Shimbun file photo
National Police Agency

Jiji Press

17:20 JST, February 8, 2024

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — The number of criminal offenses recognized by police in Japan in 2023 jumped 17% from the previous year to 703,351, the National Police Agency said Thursday.

In 2022, the figure marked the first rise in 20 years due chiefly to the easing of COVID-19 restrictions.

Referring to the second straight year of increase in crimes, an NPA official said that it would be premature to conclude that the security situation in the country has deteriorated.

In 2023, the number of serious crimes, including murder and sexual assault cases, surged 29.8% to 12,372, and that of robberies grew 18.6% to 1,361.

The number of forcible intercourse cases rose 63.8% to 2,711, following a Penal Code revision in July.

The number of abduction and human trafficking cases was up 34.9% at 526, with many cases using communication apps.

Among cybercrimes, the amount of money stolen through internet banking services grew about 5.6-fold to a record ¥8.6 billion, with the number of detected cases rising 4.8-fold to a record 5,528.

The number of people who were referred to child consultation centers by police over alleged abuse against them rose 6.1% to a record high of 122,806. Consultations on domestic violence by spouses and other partners grew 4.9% to 88,619, also a record high.