Afghan and Syrian Migrants Up to Ten Times More Likely to Be Suspected of Crimes in Germany

Afghan and Syrian nationals are significantly overrepresented among suspects of violent crimes in Germany, according to official statistics.

This week, the Bild newspaper revealed some of the data from Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) report “Crime in the Context of Immigration” demonstrating that some foreign groups were much more likely to be suspected of serious crimes than German nationals.

When looking at violent crimes, there was a rate of 163 suspects per 100,000 Germans in 2024. In contrast, the rate for Afghan nationals stood at 1,722 suspects per 100,000 inhabitants. Meanwhile, the rate for Syrian nationals was 1,740 suspects per 100,000 inhabitants, or more than ten times the rate of German citizens.

According to the paper, a similar trend was born out in other categories of crime, including sexual offences or drug crimes, both of which are also led by Syrians and Afghans.

Separate figures revealed last month that foreigners now account for over 40 per cent of all suspected criminals in Germany last year. This jumped to over 43 per cent when only looking at violent crimes, recorded in the Police Crime Statistics 2024 (PKS 2024). (Read more from “Afghan and Syrian Migrants Up to Ten Times More Likely to Be Suspected of Crimes in Germany” HERE)

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