These statistics are categorised as Under Reservation. This categorisation indicates that the quality of these statistics do not meet the standards required of official statistics published by the CSO. For further information please refer to the Under Reservation FAQ page.
While most recorded crime detection rates in 2021 were lower than 2020 rates, Kidnapping & Related offences, with a 29% detection rate, saw the biggest reduction, down 17 percentage points on comparable 2020 levels. However, the volume of these crimes would be far less than for some other crime categories.
Fraud, Deception & Related offences, with a detection rate of 6%, were 13 percentage points lower than comparable 2020 levels.
Detection rates for crimes reported in 2020 (as measured in September 2022) increased across many crime types when compared with the initial detection rates for these crimes when measured in September 2021.
Nearly a quarter (24%) of Fraud offences reported in 2020 had been detected by September 2022 compared with just under a fifth (19%) in September 2021, while the detection rate for Sexual offences doubled to 20% over the same period.
The crime rate in the Dublin Metropolitan region in 2021 was generally higher than other regions, but the rate of detection was lower for a number of crimes.
Males were the suspected offender for the majority of detected crime in 2021, particularly for Sexual offences. Females were the suspected offender in a third of Theft & Related offences and were the suspected offender in just over one fifth of Fraud & Deception offences.
Just under a fifth (18%) of suspected offenders of Sexual offences reported in 2021 were aged under 18 when the offence occurred, while less than half (44%) were aged under 30 at the time of the offence.
This publication provides annual statistics relating to Recorded Crime incidents which have been marked as detected by An Garda Síochána (AGS) up to 2021.
A crime may be marked as detected when:
The rules which govern when an incident may be marked as detected by AGS are set out in the Guide to how crime is counted and recorded by An Garda Síochána (PDF 971KB) , which explains the current rules and procedures for recording crime data on PULSE.
The CSO also publishes annual statistics in respect of persons who have been recorded as the victims or suspected offenders of serious crimes against the person such as homicide, sexual violence or assault and related offences, see Recorded Crime Victims and Suspected Offenders.
‘Statistics Under Reservation’
Since March 2018, the CSO has applied a categorisation of ‘Statistics Under Reservation’ to Recorded Crime statistics, including detection statistics, to inform users that:
Please refer to the background notes for further information on this publication.
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Statistician's Comment
Commenting on the publication, Jim Dalton, Statistician in the Crime & Criminal Justice Section, said: “Recorded Crime Detection statistics published today for 2021 showed that the detection rate for most categories of crime recorded in 2021 were lower than 2020 recorded crimes when measured at the same point of time. The CSO measures detection rates eight months after the end of a particular year to ensure consistency in the measurement of detections over time.
In particular, Kidnapping & Related offences with a 29% detection rate were down 17 percentage points on comparable 2020 levels, although the volume of these crimes would be far less than for some other crime categories. Fraud, Deception & Related offences, with a detection rate of 6%, was 13 percentage points lower than comparable 2020 levels. To a lesser extent, the detection rates for Robbery, Extortion & Hijacking offences (26%), and Weapons & Explosive offences (71%) were both down by 5 percentage points on 2020 levels.
Detection rates for most crimes recorded in 2020 increased when measured again 12 months later
Detection rates can typically rise over time before settling. The statistics show that detection rates as measured in September 2022 for crimes reported in 2020 increased for most crime types when compared to the initial detection rates for these crimes when measured in September 2021. For example, nearly a quarter of Fraud offences (24%) reported in 2020 had now been detected compared to just under a fifth (19%) in 2021 and the detection rate for Sexual offences has doubled to 20% over the same period. For crimes with initially high detection rates like Public Order and Homicide offences, there is little change between the initial detection rate and subsequent updates.
Dublin generally had highest crime rates but lower detection rates for a number of crimes
The crime rate for the Dublin Metropolitan region was generally higher than other regions but the rate of detection in 2021 was lower for a number of crimes. For example, Dublin experienced a crime rate of 82 per 100,000 of population for Robbery, Extortion & Hijacking offences, which was a rate about five times higher than any other region. The corresponding detection rate however for these robbery offences was 23% for the Dublin region compared with 39% for the Southern Region.
The crime rate in Dublin for Theft & Related offences at 1,798 per 100,000 people was about three times higher than other regions, while the rate of detection was lowest at 29% compared with the highest rate of 40% for the Southern Region.
Dublin also had the highest crime rate for Attempts/Threats to Murder, Assaults, Harassments & Related offences at 481 per 100,000 people but had the lowest detection rate at 24% for these types of offences compared to a high of 40% for the Eastern Region.
Males were the suspected offender for the majority of crimes reported in 2021
As in previous years, males continued to be the suspected offender for the majority of detected crime for 2021. For detected crimes, males were the suspected offender in nearly all (98%) Sexual offences, and in almost 90% of Homicide offences, Burglary, Extortion & Hijacking offences, Controlled Drug offences, Weapons & Explosives offences, and Damage to Property. On the other hand, females were the suspected offender in just over a third (34%) of detected Theft & Related offences and for just over one fifth (22%) of offences involving Fraud & Deception.
Just under a fifth of suspected offenders of Sexual offences reported in 2021 were under 18 years when the offence took place
Just under a fifth (18%) of suspected offenders of detected Sexual offences crimes which were reported in 2021 were aged under 18 when the offence took place – less than half (44%) were aged under 30 and just over a third (36%) of suspected sexual violence offenders were aged 30 to 44. One fifth (20%) were aged 45 years or more.
Fixed Payment Notice offences fell for most categories between 2020 and 2021
Statistics for fixed payment notices issued by An Garda Síochána show a decrease in the number of fines issued for most offence categories between 2020 and 2021. The biggest rates of decrease were for Driving Without Insurance (-26%), Carriage of Goods, Trailers, Taxis & Luas offences (-26%), Cycling offences (-25%), and for failing to display a valid NCT disc (-21%). There were, however, increases in the number of fines issued for Learner Driver offences (+13%), Motorway offences (+5%), and Public Order offences (+3%).”