Violent offences committed by young people have increased in Berlin in recent years. The proportion of children involved in such offences, particularly 12- and 13-year-olds, has also risen. The problem is also being felt in schools, according to the latest “Berlin Monitoring of Violent Delinquency” report by the Violence Prevention Unit. The analysis is based on police crime statistics up to 2024.

According to the report, youth violence rose significantly in 2022 and 2023, exceeding pre-pandemic levels. There was a slight decline in 2024. That year, around 10,500 violent offences involving suspects under the age of 21 were recorded.

One finding stood out: “The proportion of children involved in youth violence offences has risen continuously over the past ten years – from 17.8 percent in 2015 to 27.9 percent in 2024.” In particular, children just under the age of 14 were identified as requiring “increased attention”.

In 80 percent of cases, the alleged perpetrators are male. However, the proportion of girls among suspects has been growing for several years. Since 2022, there has also been a significant and continuous increase in suspects with foreign citizenship.

Violence at Schools Is Increasing

The effects can also be seen in schools. Youth violence there has been “rising steadily over the long term”, according to the report. This trend is “significantly more pronounced than among young people overall”. Schools in socially disadvantaged are particularly affected, including Charlottenburg-Nord, Gropiusstadt in Neukölln, parts of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg, Treptow, Lichtenberg and Marzahn.

Many youth violence offences occur in inner-city neighbourhoods that are both socially disadvantaged and attract large numbers of visitors, such as Mitte, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg and Neukölln. Certain areas outside the city centre in Marzahn-Hellersdorf, Lichtenberg and Spandau are also affected.

Six areas with large numbers of visitors (Alexanderplatz, the government district, and Spandau Mitte) or social problems (Marzahn-Nord, Gropiusstadt, and Charlottenburg-Nord) stood out in particular.

This text was originally written and published on the 24th of September in German. It was translated into English with the use of artificial intelligence (AI).

lth/dpa