German crime figures: Are migrants unfairly targeted?
Key takeaways
- Is it true that the crime rate in Germany is higher among immigrants?
- More than a third of all suspects are not German citizens.
- However, according to Prätor, comparing figures in police crime statistics is often like comparing apples to oranges — in other words, comparing two things that are fundamentally different and thus misleading to compare.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Is it true that the crime rate in Germany is higher among immigrants? Statistics suggest as much, but numbers by themselves can be misleading. An expert explains what's behind them.
https://p.dw.com/p/5CNYCThe number of non-German suspects is more than twice as high as their share of the total population Image: K. Schmitt/Fotostand/picture alliance Advertisement Ahead of the presentation of the 2025 figures for crime in Germany by the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), Susann Prätor has shared her thoughts on the issue of nationality and statistics. She is a sociologist, psychologist and legal scholar. Her work as an expert on crime draws on these diverse perspectives.
More than a third of all suspects are not German citizens. About 16% of the total population of Germany don't have German citizenship, yet they accounted for roughly 34% of suspects in crimes as diverse as theft, burglary and violent crimes.