Just one of many measures taken by Dortmund police last year to decisively tackle the problem of youth crime. "Groups of young people who commit crimes and intimidate people make people in Dortmund and Lünen feel insecure. We as Dortmund police cannot tolerate this," added Lange. "And we made this clear last year with numerous measures."
In 2023, around 22% of all suspects of criminal offenses in Dortmund (5,551 of 25,759, Lünen: around 26% and 589 of 2,259) were under the age of 21. This represents an increase of around 2 percentage points in Dortmund and just over 4 percentage points in Lünen. In the case of assault offences, the proportion of under 21-year-olds was also more than 20 percent in Dortmund (1,185 out of 5,494) and almost 30 percent in Lünen (155 out of 537), while the proportion of robbery offences was almost 50 percent in Dortmund (234 out of 494) and just over 50 percent in the neighbouring city (14 out of 26).
The Dortmund police have been fighting this trend at various levels over the past year - with many successes. For example, officers carried out several priority operations to combat youth crime. The focus was on the Dortmund districts of Aplerbeck and Scharnhorst as well as the city center and Lünen-Brambauer. There were a total of four cross-directorate priority operations to specifically combat youth crime in 2023, as well as other measures such as a presence operation on Halloween in Scharnhorst and numerous others in the affected areas. In addition, conspicuous young people are also approached by the security service on a daily basis if there is a recognizable need, checked and given the necessary measures.
On 13 October, for example, the officers in Dortmund and Lünen checked more than 130 people and issued more than 20 bans. On April 28, 110 people were checked and 33 bans were issued. During this operation, three juvenile suspects were arrested following a robbery and a blank-firing pistol was seized.
In addition to presence and control pressure on the streets, it is the investigations in the background that have also helped to set an example. Signs that have had a very clear effect in some cases. In Hörde, for example, officers arrested two 15 and 16-year-old youths in January who were suspected of having committed several crimes in the town center.
In Scharnhorst, extensive investigations led to the arrest of a 14-year-old from Dortmund at the end of June. Having just reached the age of criminal responsibility, he ended up in custody. He had already become conspicuous on several occasions before reaching the age of 14 and continued to do so seamlessly after his birthday - including committing robberies and assaults. By arresting him, the police sent a clear signal to youth groups who were once again attracting attention in the district. While there had been seven robberies in Scharnhorst by this group of offenders before the arrest, there was only one the rest of the year.
In Aplerbeck, officers banned six young people known to the police from entering the town center for four weeks in 2023. This had a positive effect on the majority of those affected, who were subsequently no longer or only occasionally noticed. In November, the police were able to identify a 16-year-old suspect who is suspected of having seriously injured a teenager with a knife during a fight. The police were also able to quickly arrest two suspects (15) after an altercation at the apple market in which a 40-year-old man was seriously injured.
In Lünen, one verdict in particular made an impact in 2023: a 17-year-old prolific offender was given a suspended juvenile prison sentence for several crimes, including theft with weapons and PC fraud. A similar case was recorded in Dortmund in November. An 18-year-old listed as an intensive offender in the Dortmund House of Juvenile Justice was also given a suspended sentence. Apparently deeply impressed by this, he and his 18-year-old friend, also a prolific offender, did not commit any further crimes in the period that followed. Both had previously been involved in violent crimes in the south of Dortmund.
The conclusion that the Dortmund police chief draws from all these successes is that the situation has improved in the districts of Hörde, Aplerbeck, Scharnhorst, inner city and Brambauer, which were previously more affected by youth crime. "This is confirmed by the officers in the police stations as well as in the youth commissioner's office." In the city center, the temporary video surveillance in the Kampstraße area at the end of 2022 and the increased presence and control measures in 2023 have certainly also contributed to this.
The police chief attributes the success of the investigations to one essential fact in particular: "In the area of youth crime, we maintain extensive networking - within the authority, with security partners, but also with partners from youth work. Without this networking, such rapid success would not always be possible. This is why I continue to see the work at the Dortmund House of Juvenile Justice as so important."
In addition to the investigating Criminal Investigation Department 32, the Dortmund public prosecutor's office and the City of Dortmund are also represented there with representatives from the juvenile justice system. "I keep hearing from the colleagues working here that the close proximity and close, regular contact bring great advantages in the processing of offenses. In some cases, the investigators are able to obtain decisions more quickly - and therefore also achieve effective results more quickly," explained the Chief Constable. "As was the case with the prolific offender from Scharnhorst, who was remanded in custody shortly after his 14th birthday."
Gregor Lange considers the work in the area of juvenile crime to be very special. "In addition to the investigations, many other tasks are of great importance here - the personal approach to the suspects, contact with the family, networking with youth welfare and youth work facilities, but also with other police stations." This network also conducts discussions with suspects who have reached the age of criminal responsibility - up to and including inclusion in the "Kurve kriegen" project. "These children and young people may be of criminal age. But we see it as an important task to make it clear to them: As the police, we have you in our sights. On the other hand, the aim must be to nip criminal careers in the bud. Criminal law may not provide the right framework here, but we create our own together with our network partners."
Working with the intensive offender concept has proven successful in the youth commissioner's office. Among other things, this means that they have their own case officer. The intensive offender concept also applies in Lünen, where the measures are closely coordinated with the public prosecutor's office and the city. Working with young offenders has shown time and time again that if the punishment for their actions follows "on the heels", i.e. promptly due to good cooperation, it has the greatest effect - not only on the person concerned, but also on those around them.
But so do the preventive measures taken by the police, which are carried out in close cooperation with the investigators. For example, youth contact officers have been working in Dortmund and Lünen for over 25 years. They maintain trusting contact with secondary schools and perform two main tasks: as contact persons in problem situations or crimes at school and as educators. They regularly give talks on topics such as what crimes young people commit, how dangerous objects are legally assessed and what dangers lurk on the internet and in social media. Lectures and workshops are developed together with the school management. The youth contact officers are in close contact with school principals and social workers, as well as with the youth welfare office and youth work organizations. Internally, they maintain contact with the youth commissioner's office and support investigative measures following crimes in the school environment, for example.
The tasks of the youth contact officers also repeatedly include measures in connection with youth crime outside of schools. An example from Dortmund shows just how effective this can be. In 2023, the youth contact officers worked together with a childcare facility where a boy repeatedly attracted attention with aggression and assaults - including against caregivers. In cooperation with KK 32 and the facility management, the youth contact officers conducted numerous interviews. The feedback from the supervisors after the intensive measures: a clear change in the boy's behavior.
In addition to the youth contact officers, the officers from the Prevention Department are also involved in prevention measures. They start with events in elementary school - with parents and teachers. The topics: primarily the dangers of digital media, but also the subject of knives. "Youth crime is currently one of the most prevalent topics and problems for anyone dealing with the issue," emphasizes the police chief. "I am very concerned that it is apparently quite normal for children and young people to carry such dangerous objects with them these days."
"The most important thing in all this work is that no one works alone here," explains Gregor Lange. "Because one thing is clear: as the police, we cannot curb youth crime alone. Educational measures are also important for this target group - at home, in youth facilities, schools, in outreach youth work and in social work."
Looking ahead to spring, the police chief concludes: "We are aware that we can expect more activity in our priority areas as the temperatures rise. That's when young people will meet up outside again. And that's what they should do. Please don't misunderstand me! But what we as police do not tolerate are criminal acts, bullying and intimidating other people who have just as much right to enjoy the nice weather in peace." This is one reason why the Dortmund police have once again adapted their presence concept to combat youth crime. In 2024, the measures will continue to focus on the area of responsibility of Police District 3, which includes Aplerbeck, Scharnhorst and Lünen. With a continuous presence, the aim is to maintain a high level of control and sanction pressure through low-threshold intervention.