Topic summary
Copycat crime
A copycat crime is a criminal act that is modeled after or inspired by a previous crime. Perpetrators typically carry out copycat crimes after exposure to media coverage of the original crime, or having witnessed the crime itself.
According to a study, copycat crime is a social phenomenon that persists and is prevalent enough to have an impact on the whole criminal landscape, primarily by influencing criminal tactics as opposed to criminal motive or the emergence of criminal traits.