Cyprus sees an 18.2% rise in crime cases in 2022

The number of true crime cases reported to the Police rose by 18.2% in Cyprus in 2022, with the Crime Index expressed in 100,000 inhabitants rising to 584 from 501 in 2021 and 482 the year before.

According to the Criminal Statistics for 2022 reported by the Statistical Service of Cyprus (CyStat) the largest share of offences were crimes against property with 39.8% whereas 19.4% were offences injurious to the public in general, with respective percentage in 2021 at 37.5% and 19.5% respectively.

The number of serious offences reported to the Police in 2022 was 5.402, of which 5.332 were found to be true cases, while in 2021 the number of serious offences reported was 4.580, of which 4.512 were considered as true cases.

CyStat reported that among the 5,332 true cases of serious offences in 2022, a total of 4,868 victims were recorded, 1,053 of which were legal entities, whereas of the 3,815 victims who were natural persons, 78.3% were Cypriots, 7.2% were EU-27 citizens, while 14.5% were citizens of non-EU countries.

In 4,512 true cases of serious offences recorded in 2021, a total of 4.241 victims were recorded, 1.037 of which were legal entities.

In both years, most of the victims which were legal entities (37.5% in 2022 and 42.3% in 2021) were victims of the group of offences injurious to the public in general, while most of the victims who were natural persons (54.7% in 2022 and 52.7% in 2021) were victims of offences against property.

A total of 6,917 offenders were involved in serious offences during 2022.

Of the 6,885 who were natural persons, 961 were females (14,0%), reflecting the fact that the involvement of women in serious crime remains relatively small compared to that of men.

As regards the citizenship of offenders who were natural persons, 56.4% were Cypriots and 32.2% were non-EU citizens. Similar results were recorded in 2021: a total of 5,896 offenders were involved in the commission of serious offences (true cases). Of the 5,877 who were natural persons, 12.1% were females, 60.8% were Cypriots and 25.2% were non-EU citizens, CyStat reported.

The main offences committed by both males and females were offences against property (37.6% and 26.2% respectively).

During 2022, a total of 713 juveniles (aged less than 18) were involved in the commission of offences, 60 of which were girls, accounting for 8.4% of juvenile offenders.

A total of 345 juveniles involved in serious offences and 368 in minor offences. Concerning the citizenship of juvenile offenders involved in both serious and minor offences, 54% were Cypriots and 27,3% were EU-27 citizens.

As far as judicial statistics are concerned, in 2022 a total of 64,276 persons (50,150 males and 14,126 females) appeared before the Courts charged with an offence and had their cases disposed of, recording an increase of 9.5% from the corresponding figures for 2021.

The ratio of the number of offenders convicted to the number of persons prosecuted was calculated to be 0.58 in 2022 and 0.57 in 2021.

The share of females to the total number of persons prosecuted has increased over the years from 7.2% in 1976, to 15.1% in 1990 and 17.1% in 2010. In 2020 the corresponding percentage rose to 22.3% and declined to 21.1% in 2021 and rose by to 22,0% in 2022, CyStat said.

The total number of persons convicted in 2022 reached 36,984, of which 28,581, or 77.3%, were males.

According to CyStat, in 2022 the bulk of offences were motoring offences, accounting for 57.2% of the total number of male convictions and 67% of the total number of female convictions, with the corresponding data for 2021 amounting to 53.4% and 59.6% respectively.

Both in 2022 and in 2021, the most imposed sentence by the courts was fines, which was applied in 91.7% and 92.6% of convictions respectively.

The prison population on the 1st of September 2022 was 927 persons, 852 males and 75 females. The overwhelming majority of prisoners (97%) were 21 years of age or older, while 71.3% were convicted prisoners and 28.7% were prisoners awaiting trial.

The Cypriot prisoners amounted to 44,8% of the total. The corresponding figures for 2021 were 645 males, corresponding to 91,2% of the total prison population which had reached 707 persons on the 1st of September 2021.

During 2022, the admissions of convicted prisoners numbered 1,001 (833 males and 168 females), of whom 750 males and 164 females had been convicted of criminal offences by the criminal courts and the martial court.

The corresponding figures for 2021 were 727 admissions (624 males and 103 females), of whom 568 males and 101 females had been convicted of criminal offences. The rest had been convicted of offences against the military criminal code, or were non-criminal prisoners, i.e. civil debtors or fine defaulters.

The rate of sentenced prisoners per 100,000 inhabitants aged 16 and over rose to 132 in 2022, compared to 97 in 2021. The corresponding rate for penal offenders was 121 in 2022 and 90 in 2021.

Most of the sentences imposed in 2022 were of duration up to 18 months, thus resulting in a median length of sentence of 9.6 months compared to 9.1 months in 2021.

The actual period spent in prison, however, is generally shorter than that imposed with the sentence, being reduced primarily by the use of remission, CyStat said, noting that consequently, the median length of stay in prison for the total number of convicted prisoners, computed based on the number of releases in 2022, was 4.1 months compared to 3.6 months in 2021 (based on the corresponding number of releases)

Of the total number of admitted prisoners in 2022, the majority, accounting for over 85%, did not have a previous custodial sentence, whereas among those who had served at least one custodial sentence in the past, 39.3% had been readmitted to prison within a period shorter than 12 months from their last release from prison, whereas 58% had been convicted for the same offence group as in their previous custodial sentence.