Dropping crime figures clash with reality, National Police Chief says

The falling crime figures in the Netherlands sometimes clash with reality, National Police chief Erik Akerbom said on Wednesday at the presentation of the police's annual results for 2017. Last year crime figures fell by 11 percent, the fifth year in a row that there's been a decline.

"But falling crime figures remain abstract if people do not notice that in daily life", Akerboom said. "If the neighborhood doesn't feel safe, for example, and the police or other authorities haven't been able to take that feeling away. We as police have to be aware of that. Because the reality of the figures has little meaning in the daily lives of some."

The police note that cybercrime and so-called undermining crime are posing an increasing problem.

Last year the police responded to over 1.8 million incidents. "Especially the extra calls for assistance with disturbed persons showed a worrying increase - 83,501 incidents in total", the police said.