Cops targeted in 12,500 incidents of violence, aggression last year

Police officers were the target of aggression and violence in 12,500 incidents last year, about the same as the previous year. “Society has become more hardened since the coronavirus pandemic,” Henk van Dijk, program manager for violence against police officers, told NOS.

Before the pandemic, the police counted around 10,000 incidents of violence and aggression against cops per year. Since the pandemic, the counter has stood above 12,000 incidents every year.

There were also 3,458 incidents of violence against other first responders and public transport workers, a slight decrease compared to 2023. Van Dijk doesn’t think the number of incidents decreased, only first responders’ willingness to report them.

The majority of incidents last year were verbal violence. The police recorded 5,300 insults against cops and 1,200 threats. Resisting arrest was the second most common type of incident at 3,000.

Over 1,000 cops were physically assaulted, including at protests and by football hooligans. The police also registered 139 incidents of attempted manslaughter and 46 aggravated assaults.

The police also counted 23 cases of doxxing - cops’ names, addresses, or telephone numbers getting posted online with the intent to harass them. This is the first time that the police recorded this figure nationwide. Doxxing became a punishable offence last year.

The violence has a big impact on the affected police officers, Van Dijk said. “People do not realize the damage they cause. Physically and mentally.” He believes that the violence won’t decrease as long as the atmosphere in society does not improve. “People stand up against each other, but also against the government. As police, we are on the front line.”

The police called New Year’s Eve a “recurring annual low point” with police officers getting pelted with fireworks on the street. The police are, therefore, happy that parliament agreed to ban consumer fireworks, though they’re concerned by the fact that the ban will only be implemented next year. Van Dijk worries that this coming New Year’s, when fireworks will still be allowed, will be worse than ever.