LONDON – A third of sexual abuse reports in 2017 involved abuse againstchildren, according to Norwegian police chief Odd Reidar Humlegård.

Despite the overall decline in crime, reported sexual abuse, above allagainst children, is on the rise, according to the recent figures for 2017published by the Norwegian policelink>.

At the national level, the number of reported cases of abuse of childrenaged 14-16 increased by 182.3 percent since 2013. During the same period,reported abuse of children under 14 increased by 73.1 percent. In theWestern police district alone, reports of sex abuse against childrenunder 14 have increased by 132 percent in 2017.

“It’s a huge boost. This is partly due to an increased detection of ‘darknumbers,’ and partly because it has a greater spread, especiallyin network-related cases. They involve many people and have been goingon for many years,” Humlegård told national broadcaster NRKlink>.

[image: Norwegian Trade and Industry Minister Trond Giske speaks during apress conference at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on May 11, 2012]The police chief referred to the Dark Roomlink> case, in which apedophile link> ringinvolving dozens of people was detected, and the Tysfjord case, in whichover 150 rapes and sexual assaults happening over decades in the tinyeponymous municipality in the Arctic were brought to light.

“Often, the child knows the perpetrator. Often these are people they areattached to, and it happens in a life situation from which the child cannotescape,” Humlegård said, as quoted by Norwegian TV-channel TV2link>.

As regards other crime, though, Norway has seen a steady decline for fiveconsecutive years, the policelink>reported.

“Between 2013 and 2017, there’s been a decline of 70,000 registered cases,which is very much,” Humlegård said emphasizing a marked drop in crimesagainst property, in particular burglary, theft and robbery, which havefallen between 40 and 55 percent over the past five years.

In 2017, 52.6 percent of all reported offenses were solved. Although adecline of 0.8 percent compared with 2016, it is nevertheless an increaseof 2.2 percent compared with 2013.

In 2016, Statistics Norway reported the lowest crime rate in 24 years,with 336,500 reported offences, prompting an increase of confidencein police work for the third consecutive year, reaching a solid 83 percent.