Number of sexual abuses rises by 22% in Jan-Sep

A total of 1,335 rapes were recorded during January to September this year, which was 241 cases (22 per cent) more than in January to September 2020, according to Statistics Finland.

The recorded number of sexual abuses of a child was 1,457, which is 14.6 per cent more than in the year before.

The act on aggravated rape of a child entered into force on 15 April 2019. In January to September 2021, a total of 59 cases of aggravated rape of a child were reported. A total of 48 cases were reported in the corresponding period of the previous year. In the statistics, aggravated rape of a child is included in the figures on cases of sexual abuse of a child. In addition, 1,007 other sexual offences were reported. Of them, 545 were cases of sexual harassment, which is 171 cases (45.7 per cent) more than in 2020.

The recorded numbers of rapes and sexual abuses of a child reported to the authorities vary much yearly. Individual reports of an offence may include a series of incidents comprising several criminal acts.

Meanwhile, the numbers of some other crimes were reduced in the first nine moth of this year compared to the stipulated period of the previous year.

According to Statistics Finland’s preliminary data, a total of 357,300 offences against the Criminal Code were recorded by the police, customs and border guard during January to September 2021, which is 29,000 cases (7.5 per cent) fewer than in the corresponding period in 2020.