Crime in Poland is combated by the

Polish police Policja () is the generic name for the national police force of the Republic of Poland. The Polish police force was known as ''policja'' throughout the Second Polish Republic (1918–1939), and in the modern Republic of Poland since 1990. Its cu ...

and other government agencies. Poland's homicide rate is among the lowest in Europe and the country ranks 25th in

Global Peace Index Global Peace Index (GPI) is a report produced by the Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP) which measures the relative position of nations' and regions' peacefulness. The GPI ranks 163 independent states and territories (collectively accountin ...

in 2022.

Crime by type

Murder

In 2011, Poland had a murder rate of 1.2 per 100,000 population. There were a total of 449 murders in Poland in 2011. In 2014 Poland had a murder rate of 0.7 per 100,000. There were a total 283 murders in Poland in 2014.''Global Study on Homicide''. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2013.
/ref> In 2020, the homicide rate in Poland was 0.71 per 100,000 similar to recent years and down from a high of 2.4 per 100,000 in 1993 and 1994.

Organized crime

The most well known of the Polish organized crime groups in the 1990s were the so-called ''Pruszkow'' and the ''Wolomin'' gangs. Polish organized crime emerged in the 1990s, when the traditional criminal underworld became better organised and due to rising corruption. Organized crime groups were well known (1992) for operating sophisticated

car theft Motor vehicle theft (also known as a car theft and, in the United States, grand theft auto) is the criminal act of stealing or attempting to steal a motor vehicle. Nationwide in the United States in 2020, there were 810,400 vehicles reported ...

-rings, as well as for their involvement in drug trafficking (the main drug being

amphetamine Amphetamine (contracted from alpha- methylphenethylamine) is a strong central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is used in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), narcolepsy, and obesity. It is also commonly used ...

) and weapon trafficking. The ''Pruszków mafia'' was an organized criminal group that emerged from the Warsaw suburb of Pruszków in the beginning of the 1990s. The group is known for being involved in large car-theft rings,

drug trafficking A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalati ...

(including

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Am ...

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and bro ...

hashish Hashish ( ar, حشيش, ()), also known as hash, "dry herb, hay" is a drug made by compressing and processing parts of the cannabis plant, typically focusing on flowering buds (female flowers) containing the most trichomes. European Monitoring ...

and

kidnapping In criminal law, kidnapping is the unlawful confinement of a person against their will, often including transportation/asportation. The asportation and abduction element is typically but not necessarily conducted by means of force or fear: the p ...

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...

weapon trafficking Arms trafficking or gunrunning is the illicit trade of contraband small arms and ammunition, which constitutes part of a broad range of illegal activities often associated with transnational criminal organizations. The illegal trade of small arm ...

(including

AK-47 The AK-47, officially known as the ''Avtomat Kalashnikova'' (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is a gas-operated assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian small-arms d ...

's) and

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the ...

. Even though law enforcement dealt a severe blow to the ''Pruszków mafia'', it is alleged that Pruszków-based gangs, with or without notice from their former leaders, have regained their strength in recent years and have begun setting up their car-theft rings and connections with

Colombian drug cartels A drug cartel is any criminal organization with the intention of supplying drug trafficking operations. They range from loosely managed agreements among various drug traffickers to formalized commercial enterprises. The term was applied when the l ...

again.

A similar organized crime group known as the ''Wołomin mafia'' from

Wołomin Wołomin is the main town of Wołomin County situated in the Masovian Voivodship. Wołomin is situated approximately east of Warsaw, the capital of Poland, near the railway to Białystok. It has approximately 36,000 inhabitants and covers an a ...

near

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...

, with whom they fought bloody turf wars, was crushed by the Polish police in cooperation with the German police in a spectacular raid on a highway between Konin and Poznan in September 2011.

Corruption

Poland ranked 30th in the 175 country listing the

Corruption Perception Index The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) is an index which ranks countries "by their perceived levels of public sector corruption, as determined by expert assessments and opinion surveys." The CPI generally defines corruption as an "abuse of entr ...

for 2015. It is the tenth successive year in which Poland's score and ranking has improved in the Index.

Polish cities most affected by crime

Crime dynamics

While local organized crime in Poland existed during the interwar period, it has mostly developed since the

fall of communism The Revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, was a revolutionary wave that resulted in the end of most communist states in the world. Sometimes this revolutionary wave is also called the Fall of Nations or the Autumn of Nat ...

(late 1980s/1990s) with the introduction of

free market In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any ot ...

system in Poland and the lessening of the

police The police are a Law enforcement organization, constituted body of Law enforcement officer, persons empowered by a State (polity), state, with the aim to law enforcement, enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citize ...

(

milicja ''Militsiya'' ( rus, милиция, , mʲɪˈlʲitsɨjə) was the name of the police forces in the Soviet Union (until 1991) and in several Eastern Bloc countries (1945–1992), as well as in the non-aligned SFR Yugoslavia (1945–1992). The ...

) power. Crime in Poland is lower than in many countries of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

.J. van Dijk, J. van Kesteren, P. Smit
Criminal Victimisation in International Perspective, Key Findings from the 2004-2005 ICVS and EU ICS
, WODC 2007 Newer studies (2009) report that the crime victimisation rate in Poland is constantly decreasing, and in 2008 Poland was at a low end of 25 among the 36 European countries listed. A 2004 report on security concerns of European Union residents indicated that the Polish public (along with that of Greece) are the most afraid of crime, a finding which does not correlate with the actual crime threat.J. van Dijk, R. Manchin, J. van Kesteren, S. Nevala, G. Hide
The Burden of Crime in the EU
Research Report: A Comparative Analysis of the European Crime and Safety Survey (EU ICS) 2005

Crime by type

Murder

Organized crime

Corruption

Polish cities most affected by crime

Crime dynamics

See also

References

Further reading