German police recorded the highest number of violent incidents among all of the country’s railway stations at Berlin’s central train station in 2024.
There were 764 cases, up from 620 the previous year, according to a response seen by dpa from the federal government to a written enquiry by the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) parliamentary group.
For Dortmund’s main station, the statistics indicate 735 incidents, Hanover’s main station 715, and Cologne’s main station 703.
According to the statistics, the total number of violent incidents at German train stations rose from 25,640 in 2023 to 27,160 last year.
The number of sexual offences increased from 1,898 to 2,262 over the year, while property damage rose from 30,961 to 32,671.
In the area of drug-related offences, there were a total of 10,174 cases known in 2024, which is fewer than the previous year, when there were 18,382. Reasons for the decrease were not specified. A partial legalisation of cannabis has been in place since April 2024.
The numbers are based on police incoming statistics, where offences are recorded when they become known to the police. This means that there is also a dark figure.
However, for 2024, it should be noted that due to the European Football Championship last summer, a particularly high number of people were travelling by train for several weeks.
The spokesman for internal affairs of the conservative faction in the German parliament, Alexander Throm told Die Welt newspaper: “Train stations and trains becoming places of fear severely impact the public’s feeling of security and should not be a permanent condition.”
AfD lawmaker Martin Hess said in a statement, “Train stations, once places of mobility and peaceful encounters, are increasingly becoming no-go areas.”
At Dortmund’s central station, the most sexual offences were reported last year with 53 cases. This was followed by the main stations in Frankfurt, where there were 40, and Hamburg also with 40. In 2023, Cologne’s central station led with 57 offences.
The AfD’s enquiry also requested information on the origin of suspects. Hess, whose party is vehemently anti-immigrant, remarked, “In many areas of crime, foreigners are disproportionately represented among the suspects.”
