No. of recorded crimes in Japan drops to lowest postwar level in 2020

recorded crimes in Japan drops to lowest postwar level in 2020

Not all crime is being recorded, some even being dismissed during reporting. Crime like cybercrime sometimes people have no idea whether they become victim. Even if they do it's not easy to get necessary evidence for reporting, at the end they still have plenty unsolved cases.

Also not all crime is being followed up in Japan, from Japanese corporate crime scandal to stalker.

https://japantoday.com/category/crime/model-told-by-police-to-'talk-it-out'-with-stalker-who-came-to-her-door

Look at our population number 126 million.

Also Japan population is declining, so less people will lead to less crime being committed .

These facts are not going to play well with the usual suspects who keep banging on about "crime increasing in Japan", "things getting worse" etc.

Crime is decreasing all the time as Ive said all along. Good for Japan.

I suggest the data be analyzed qualitatively. While the consequence and damage of crimes vary, they are categorized and counted quantitatively.

An economic organized crime such as fraud may be more damaging than a shoplifting in terms of the economic loss and growing culture of distrust in society.

An economic organized crime such as fraud may be more damaging than a shoplifting in terms of the economic loss and growing culture of distrust in society.

Yes, like scam that targeted eldery people, when those people got scammed they can lost their entire life saving and it's not equal to shoplifting. Reading news in the past, now who should we trust?

https://japantoday.com/category/crime/kanagawa-police-officer-arrested-for-theft-after-using-elderly-man’s-cash-cards

They should train more cyber police now that times are changing. Maybe is time to recruit more who are able to work home with a computer.

You're joking with this one right? Did you forget about mass daily sexual assaults on public transport in Japan!?

This one is rarely being reported, even there always victim everyday from their daily commute.

I guess a large proportion of those crimes would usually be committed at Izakayas or karaoke places after 8pm, or during alcohol affected travel home.

Good news. And from an already really Low rate. Maybe one good consequences of the current restrictions.

Although I would guess less public domestic crimes may have gone up but been less reported.

I think most counties also have same situation of crime declining during the pandemic.

Anyway, I am very lucky to live in Japan.

I’m not surprised the cases of domestic violence rose. With couples stuck at home and actually spending time together and actually getting to know each other and finding out they actually hate each other. Sad.

Yet car theft is increasing, especially for Lexus cars, as per this mornings TV news.

Agree with @sakurasuki 7:01a JST “Not all crime is recorded, dismissed during reporting.....not all being followed up in Japan...in the end, they still have plenty unsolved cases,.”

Yes, it is repugnant, but there is truth to the stories of ‘victim blaming’ here in this ‘culture of shaming’.

Does it? Or isn't it that less crimes are reported or completely dismissed?

Living here for 30+ years, it became pretty obvious that Japanese people do not like to be bearers of bad news and negative things, despite they happen. Especially our government.

For example, yesterday’s Crime story of “the :40 express train sexual assault”.

@sakurasuki 7:39a JST “...daily sexual assaults on public transport in Japan!? ...even though there are victims everyday on the daily coimmute...This one is rarely reported,.” || @itsonlyrocknroll 8:17a JST “The 17 year old high school student stood, bewildered, traumatized, embarrassed and humiliated, suffering in silence.”

Lets’s not be surprised if it become another “non-prosecuted for undisclosed reasons’.

The key word in the headline is, ‘recorded’. It doesn’t mean there is less crime. It just means less are being recorded. More are being dealt with by a slap on the wrist and a bag of cash.

Because politicians are immune from prosecution.

Another example of ‘deflecting’ responsibility, leading to more under-reporting: *“On stalking, police received 20,189 ‘*consultations’* in 2020 ...remaining **above 20,000 every year since 2013***.”

Consultation means: ‘‘don’t waste our time, go away’; ‘we don’t like paperwork’; “we will ask ___ to leave you alone”; “perhaps, you should walk home a different way.” And, ‘we can’t ruin the 99% conviction rate.” - So, “No official report report” was taken.

Thieves were old too, these days the declining population in Japan lead to fewer thieves as well!

The J NPA is known worldwide to be more ‘reactive’ than ‘proactive’.

“an NPA official said, "Changes in society continue,...it's possible there are more victims of abuse, DV & stalking who remain hidden, so we will take preventative measures by responding promptly to consultations."

‘Proactive’ & ‘preventative’ is having more police officers ‘on-foot’, accompanying commuters, pursuing leads, ...not just driving by occasionally with their red lights continually flashing. We’re NOT asking for a ‘police-state’. Just good, moral, community police officers.

Exactly, the sum of crime is the same , but the ‘vector’ has changed direction to the inside of homes. For example, they don’t steel a handbag from a bypasser at night, but now beat the money out of their wife in the morning to have their pachinko money.

How about the number in white collar crimes in the government? Were those numbers up or stable?

I find the discrepancy between this:

there were 614,303 crime cases in Japan last year

and this:

crime cases hit a peak in 2002 when police recorded 2,853,739 cases.

to be highly suspicious.

This data is telling us that the crime rate in Japan was about 500% higher in 2002 than it is today.

I can appreciate that the crime rate has probably gone down over the past 20 years, but it can't have gone down THAT much.

I lived here in 2002. And in 2020. I don't remember Japan feeling appreciably more dangerous in 2002 than it did last year. Certainly I did not feel that I was at 5 times greater risk of being the victim of a crime back then. This is just anecdotal and my personal experience might not be an accurate reflection of how society as a whole has changed but still, I would think for a change of that magnitude I should have noticed something.

Goodbye old normal, hello new normal.

Sounds more like ‘a Public Relations release’ more that a report of statistical findings: “Street Crimes’ are down, ‘heinous crimes’ are down, and, ‘Fraud on the Elderly are rising,...”

Looks like there is some ‘mixing’ of various categories; miscellaneous statistics lumped together.  Re: @rainyday 2:02p JST ‘...find the discrepancy... (possibly to skew the findings?)

First, “vending machine vandalism” is a ‘Property Crime’, like shoplifting, graffiti and ‘breaking & entering’ into unoccupied homes & businesses.  

Next, ‘Crimes Against Persons’ mean ‘physical contact was involved’, like “purse-snatching”, threats, stalking, robbery, burglary into occupied homes.  ‘C.A.P.’ also includes physical assaults like slapping, punching, kicking, train-groping, throwing body fluids, sexual assault, rape and murder.

A sub-categories of these ‘Heinous Crimes’ are ‘Inter-Familial/Household Crimes’ including Domestic Violence, Spouse Abuse and, Child Abuse.  

‘Economic Crimes’ include CyberTheft, IdentityTheft, TelephoneFraud & ‘white collar’ crimes like Tax Evasion & Embezzlement.

For example, today there are more stories about ‘Crimes against Persons’: ‘Three 16-year-olds arrested for extorting money and mopeds from high school boys”

There were threats; physical assault; ‘strong-arm robbery’ (no weapon); vehicle larceny; and, extortion:”

However, despite the life-threatening violence, prosecution ‘as adults’ will be diverted.

Therefore, these ‘juvenile’ crimes will probably not be included in the NPA statistical report.

Re: @expat  12:28p JST So far, “There are already 8 pages of crime in the archive for 2021.”

White collar crime and corruption is rampant arrests for the theft of a few hundred yen from desperation are newsworthy.

https://www.epi.org/publication/wage-theft-bigger-problem-forms-theft-workers/

I would reckon this is the much greater issue in Japan.

Once again, statistics burying statistics by using the word recorded

Crime statistics are lower across the world. I wonder why. Its as if there is something similarly affecting every country that limited contact between people.

Crime statistics are lower across the world. I wonder why. Its as if there is something similarly affecting every country that limited contact between people.

How would a year long pandemic have created a trend that’s been continuing for decades now?

No. of recorded crimes in Japan drops to lowest postwar level in 2020

The small group of regular commentators here who always claim that crime is increasing in Japan must be surprised.