There has been a notable increase in the number of suspected sexual offences reported to authorities during the first nine months of this year, compared to the same period last year.
According to data released by Statistics Finland on Friday, a total of 7,800 suspected sexual offences were reported between January and September this year, an increase of 10 percent on the same nine months of 2024.
"A total of 2,200 reports were made about dissemination or possession of sexually offensive images of children or watching a sexually offensive performance by a child, which is nearly 140 percent more than in the previous year," Statistics Finland's press release noted.
The report added that over 90 percent of these suspected crimes took place online.
The latest crime data also shows a spike in the number of incidents of suspected shoplifting, totalling some 54,000 cases this year — 16 percent more than January-September of last year.
In addition, reports of assaults are also on the rise. The figure for this year is 32,100 — up by over three percent compared to 2024.
Overall, a total of 408,900 offences against the Criminal Code were recorded by the police, customs officials and the Finnish Border Guard from January to September this year, a 3.1 percent increase on the first nine months of 2024.
A report published by Statistics Finland earlier this year revealed that while Finland's homicide rate is falling, other crimes — and the overall crime rate — appear to be rising.
