Burglaries have risen enormously across Belgium in recent months, now numbering more than 200 per day. Experts attribute the "explosion" to growing financial desperation as citizens struggle to cope with sky-high food and energy costs.
According to statistics recently published by La Dernière Heure (DH), over the period of January and February 2023, burglaries rose across nearly all regions of Belgium compared to the same period last year, with Antwerp (115%), East Flanders (92%) and Limburg (90%) registering especially remarkable increases.
Brussels recorded a smaller but still far from insignificant rise (32%), while Liège was the only Belgian province to report a decline, albeit a marginal 2%.
"What is interesting is that the profile of burglars is diversifying," Maëlle Charles, the Brussels Branch Manager of Verisure security company, explained. "Professional burglars continue their operations, often in gangs, but we see that there are more and more opportunistic thieves."
"With the decrease in purchasing power, financial insecurity increases. Some families can no longer make ends meet and so commit burglaries. In Belgium, burglary is not considered too serious a crime, which tempts people into it."
A troubling trend
The recent figures follow a number of other recent reports which highlight a similarly worrying rise in the number of home robberies. One study published early last year found that Belgium has the highest per capita robbery rate in the EU; another report published in December noted that burglaries rose by 5% in 2022 compared to the previous year.
But burglars are resorting to ever more ingenious methods to achieve their goals: "One of our clients was on vacation when people came with a white van and a ladder. A neighbour went to meet them to find out what they were doing. They then kindly introduced themselves as employees of a plumbing company who came to check on a leak, specifying that the occupant of the house was aware of their visit. The neighbour then left while the so-called workers entered the house."
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Perhaps most worrying is that burglars seem to be much less averse to breaking into homes when the residents are still there. Charles states that in some cases, this is even done intentionally: "These are the most lucrative burglaries since all the personal belongings are in the house."
"Burglars can steal watches, mobile phones, wallets, car keys, etc. Burglaries also often occur in the summer when people who have a garden enjoy the sun and leave their doors open. I have even experienced this myself."
