Crimes recorded by the Portuguese police increased by around 8% last year compared to 2022 and reached the highest figures in 10 years, totaling 371,995, statistics from the Directorate-General for Justice Policy reveal.
The annual statistical release, published on the website of the Directorate-General for Justice Policy (DGPJ), indicates that the number of crimes recorded by the police authorities in 2023 was 371,995, 28,150 more than in 2022, when there were 343,845 crimes.
The statistics also show that not since 2013, when there were 376,403, have there been as many crimes in Portugal as in 2023.
The data also shows that only in 2020, a year marked by lockdowns due to the covid-19 pandemic, did crime fall below 300,000, with 298,787 crimes.
The DGPJ said that crimes against property accounted for around 51.0% of the total (189,657 crimes), followed by crimes against people, which accounted for around 24.4% of the total (90,840 crimes) and crimes against life in society, which accounted for 11.9% of the total (44,439 crimes).
According to the Ministry of Justice, only crimes against pets did not rise in 2023 compared to 2022, from 2,022 to 1,729.
The type of crime that rose the most last year were those committed against the state (up 16.9%), from 6,559 in 2022 to 7,713 in 2023, followed by those against cultural identity/personal integrity (up 9.6%), which totaled 367, compared to 289 in 2022.
The justice statistics also show that crimes against people have risen by 5.8% and against property by 7.6%. The police recorded 424 more crimes against life in society, for a total of 44,439 in 2023.
The most frequent crimes in 2023 were “domestic violence against spouses or similar” (26,041), followed by driving under the influence of alcohol (24,133), offenses against physical integrity (24,111), theft by motor vehicle (20,180), computer and communications fraud (20,259), threats and coercion (16,676) and driving without a legal license (15,579).
Other of the most recorded crimes were theft of opportunity/unguarded objects (11,234), misuse of a guarantee card or payment card, device or data (10,386), theft from a commercial or industrial building without breaking and entering or false keys (8,279), theft from a residence, breaking and entering or false keys (8,237) and theft from a motor vehicle (8,189).
