The Local Germany

Explained: How to prevent a burglary at your home in Germany

Mon, 05 Oct 2020 11:35:28 +0200

While the number burglaries in Germany are currently low, it's still important to keep your property safe. Follow these tips to ensure your belongings remain secure.

Crime in Germany at lowest level since reunification

Tue, 02 Apr 2019 11:15:00 +0200

The number of crimes recorded by German police dropped last year across all states – except one.

Burglaries drop by over 20 percent in a year, signalling major police success

Wed, 11 Apr 2018 12:17:06 +0200

The number of break-ins in Germany dropped by 20 percent last year in comparison with 2016, continuing a drop in a type of crime that reached a worrying high back in 2015.

Despite being away, Munich man catches burglars by using smartphone

Fri, 03 Nov 2017 11:54:27 +0100

Police in Munich were able to catch two burglars in the act when the man whose house they broke into observed the break-in using his smartphone.

Police finger 'uncontrollable' dildo as chief burglary suspect

Tue, 31 Jan 2017 16:54:30 +0100

When a woman in Bremen heard a strange drilling sound, she panicked and called the police. The real culprit was twitching fervently in her bath tub.

Wig thieves make away with 600 different disguises

Tue, 22 Mar 2016 10:00:00 +0100

A band of robbers broke into a wig store in western Germany on Saturday night - and left every mannequin in the place looking embarrassingly bald on top.

Cat camera catches elusive cat burglars

Fri, 04 Mar 2016 13:23:24 +0100

Police pounced on a notorious band of burglars who had evaded the law in several European countries - after a they were caught out by a cat camera.

Crafty 'crook' makes German court see double

Tue, 27 Oct 2015 12:50:07 +0100

It's a trick every identical twin knows - pass the blame on to your doppelgänger. And for a convicted burglar in Düsseldorf it might just free him from a lengthy jail sentence.

World's worst burglar locks himself in house

Mon, 12 Oct 2015 18:43:48 +0200

A would-be burglar in Bonn called the police on himself in the early hours of Saturday – after getting locked inside the house he was trying to loot.

Elderly burglar foiled after losing glasses

Tue, 05 May 2015 13:44:35 +0200

One of Germany's oldest burglars has had to spend his 70th birthday in a police hospital after being caught during his latest break-in attempt.

Number of break-ins hits 16-year high

Mon, 13 Apr 2015 19:57:41 +0200

The number of burglaries has once again risen in Germany. Police figures released on Monday show an estimated 2 percent increase in the number of break-ins nationwide.

Police record six million crimes, half solved

Mon, 02 Jun 2014 11:04:00 +0200

Six million crimes were recorded by police in Germany last year, a fall on 2012, but burglaries continue to rise, particularly in the west of the country.

Police blame gangs for burglary rise

Thu, 15 May 2014 13:10:00 +0200

The number of burglaries has risen by up to 30 percent in some German states. Police are holding professional gangs responsible for the increase.

Solar panel burglars run off with door instead

Tue, 29 Oct 2013 13:31:00 +0100

An attempted burglary on a clubhouse in southern Germany on Saturday night went awry as criminals attempting to steal solar panels escaped with the building's front door instead.

Dawn raids target Rhineland burglary gang

Thu, 10 Jan 2013 13:11:00 +0100

Hundreds of police officers across western Germany carried out dawn raids on Thursday in an effort to crack down on what they believe to be a southeastern European burglary gang. Ten people were arrested.

Burglary rate surges

Tue, 17 May 2011 12:07:00 +0200

Not known as a hotbed for burglary, Germany suffered a jump of nearly 7 percent in break-ins last year, according to crime statistics cited by daily Die Welt on Tuesday.