Thomas Brooke – Remix.news April 15, 2025

Almost 48 percent of all crime suspects in Austria last year were non-Austrian, according to newly released police statistics for 2024.

A total of 335,911 suspects were investigated, with the largest groups of foreign nationals coming from Romania, Germany, and Syria. Syrian suspects alone saw the steepest increase, rising nearly 30 percent compared to the previous year.

Figures pertaining to 'German' suspects are often skewed, given the fact that foreign-born Germans are categorized as 'German' in crime reports. Similarly, foreigners living in Austria will not be included in the “foreign” category, suggesting the number of foreign-born suspects is likely to be much higher than 48 percent.

The data, presented by Interior Minister Gerhard Karner on Monday, revealed a total of 534,193 reported criminal cases in 2024 — up 1.2 percent from 2023. Of particular concern, the report highlights a significant surge in juvenile delinquency, which Karner described as a “massive” problem.

As reported by Kurier, Criminal reports involving children aged 10 to 14 have doubled in recent years, reaching 12,049 in 2024. The proportion of non-Austrian suspects in this age group stands at 48 percent. Karner said reports involving Syrian minors had “practically increased tenfold,” jumping from 150 in 2020 to around 1,000 last year.