Also the number of cases of pickpocketing has decreased by 20 per cent. Pickpocketing has been a burning issue in Prague, as pickpockets from all over the world come to Prague to try their luck.
Drop in cases of burglary
Several organized groups of pickpockets have been dismantled in Prague this year, most of them focusing on foreign tourists and visitors to Prague. “Pickpocketing, which is the biggest vice in the city centre, has decreased by over 20 per cent,” said Rudolf Blažek.
The Police also recorded a significant drop in the number of burglaries. “This has been the trend since 2005, when in the first seven months, 1,123 cases of burglary were recorded. This year, in the same period of time the number of burglaries was only 523, which is less than half of the number,” Blažek pointed out.
Less pickpockets, more police officers
In the first six months of last year, the Police recorded about 7,200 cases of pickpocketing. This year, the number was slightly over 5,400. There are many reasons why there has been less pickpocketing. First of all, places with a high occurrence of pickpockets, i.e. touristic spots, are basically permanently monitored by police patrols. Mobile posts of the municipal police are also good prevention. There have also been more police officers in the underground.
“The pressure of Prague police on pickpockets has been bigger than it used to be in the past,” added Rudolf Blažek. There are four teams in Prague specializing in pickpocketing, numbering the total number of around 40 police officers which are in the streets and do not deal with the paperwork concerning those that have been arrested. This is an improvement, just five years ago there was only one team with a limited number of people.
Gang behind the bars
The situation surrounding punishing arrested pickpockets is much worse, though. Courts are rather slow. We are happy to say now, that at last, the case of the Romanian pickpocket gang has been closed and the criminals have been sentenced to two to six years in prison. The gang was dismantled thanks to the co-operation of the Police, the Municipal Police and the camera system. The gang specialized on Asian tourists and often took their credit cards. Since these tourists have often their PIN written somewhere near the card, they easily withdrew money from their accounts.
This year, two smaller groups of pickpockets have been arrested, which can have an impact on the pickpockets who travel around European cities.