Number of murders in Czechia 1991-2023

The number of murders declined considerably in Czechia in the observed period. Although the murder count initially grew from 194 in 1991 to a high of 313 in 1998, this figure decreased to 157 murders in 2023. The lowest number of murders was recorded in 2021 at 105 murders in the whole year.

Czechia’s criminal situation

The Czech Criminal Code defines murder as the intentional killing of another person, with a minimum sentencing of eight to ten years. Such a criminal act is not very common in Czechia. After all, in 2022, the total number of registered criminal acts in Czechia amounted to 182,000, so the proportion of murders is small.
The number of registered crimes is related to the criminal code of each country. However, Czechia was among the ten countries with the highest incarceration rate in Europe in 2022, which in this case is defined as the number of prisoners per 100,000 inhabitants. The high incarceration rate in Czechia is sometimes attributed to long prison sentences, meaning that people accumulate in prisons despite fewer people being sentenced than in other countries lower on the list.

Is Czechia a safe country?

Despite the high incarceration rate, Czechia is considered to be a very safe country. As of 2023, it was the 12th most peaceful country ranked according to the Global Peace Index, which assesses the safety and security of society. It ranked above some fellow European countries like Germany, Finland, and the Netherlands.