Crime rates vary greatly from country to country and are influenced by many factors.
For example, high poverty levels and unemployment tend to inflate a country’s crime rate.
Conversely, strict police enforcement and severe sentences tend to reduce crime rates.
Crime in Ethiopia includes various techniques ranging from petty theft to homicide.
Motivations of crime include high unemployment rate, lack of basic needs of life, housing and education.
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Rapid population growth also contributed to increase the criminal rate in Ethiopia.
It is widely believed that a country's urbanization and its crime rate go hand in hand.
As one increases so does the other.
Snapshot Crime rates are influenced by several factors, such as poverty, unemployment, and law enforcement strictness.
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Crime Trends in Ethiopia
Crime patterns had been radically changed in Ethiopia due to social and political contributions.
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Prior to 1974 revolution, the feudal and monarchical system of the Ethiopian Empire, there were poor management in the surveillance of crime.
Police statistics indicated that crime increased up to 1973-1974, hence they gradually began to decline.
This has been resolved after the Derg regime.
Postrevolutionary changes in crime patterns, however, can be discerned.
The nationalization of rural and urban lands as well as the establishment of Peasants' Associations and Urban Dwellers' Associations have radically changed the social, economic, and political structures under which people live, thus creating changed crime opportunities.
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The crimes of embezzlement, the misuse of public funds, and other property crimes have increased in the postrevolutionary period.
Breaches of new regulations constitute new forms of criminality which involve the hoarding of consumer goods, the violation of price regulations, and black-market trafficking in goods.
Nowadays, with the increase in the number of automobiles and motorcycles on the streets of Ethiopia, a new crime wave is being initiated.
The method is almost always the same; two thugs seated on a motorcycle will pull up fast to an unsuspecting victim on the road.
The thug in the back seat then proceeds to snatch what he can, usually something held in the hands of the victim at the time of the attack.
Items such as purses, smartphones, laptops, and jewelry are the most common targets.
They take what they can and are gone in a flash.
Although, minor theft such as this should not be a cause for great concern, there is an increase in the number of violent crimes associated with this type of thievery.
Muggings can quickly turn violent leading to bodily injury or even worse; death.
It has been reported that there is indeed an increase in the number of deaths linked with random robberies.
Criminal investigators are left to play catch up to these new and innovative tactics being employed by these unlawful miscreants.
Yet in still, systems put in place such as the ever invasive CCTV cameras are no doubt being used to put a dent in the sinister plans of the criminals conducting these vile affairs.
For the moment though, a majority of the crimes that are being thwarted is apparently by good old fashioned "snitching".
Not too long ago, a large counterfeiting operation was shut down due to a report by a neighbor.
This counterfeiting operation in Ethiopia was fairly sophisticated; they falsified court documents, university degrees, made counterfeit Ethiopian birr as well as fake dollars, and even had weapons stashed.
Addis Ababa used to be a place where the society was very closely attached.
People generally knew one another.
As the society becomes more affluent, people are moving out of neighborhoods they grew up in and renting homes across the city.
This was rare in the past and families are more divided and spread out.
In light of this, Ethiopians are becoming more reliant on an effective police and security agency.
Regional Crime Statistics
In one survey of the Oromia Region, total number of criminals reported to the police was 96.300, male and female offenders 85,100 (88.37%) and 11,200 (11.63%) respectively.
This, female offenders share 1/10 of all criminals in Oromia.
The ratio of male offenders was 7:6:1.
Crime in Addis Ababa
In Addis Ababa, crimes include robbery, pickpocketing, scamming and burglary among others are common, although the lowest rate compared to other African cities and within the country.
Unlike most African countries, the capital Addis Ababa is safer place in comparison.
However, there are numerous reports of minor crimes such as robbery, pickpocketing, scamming and theft related matters.
Robbery is increasing especially at night and also in public sites.
Since 2013, the crime activity in Addis Ababa is increasing alarmingly daily.
Addis Ababa is the second city in the Oromia Region in terms of frequency of criminal activity annually, according to the Ethiopian Federal Police Commission 2016 report.
Rural-urban migration and unemployment has been preliminary factors affecting the city by elevating crime rate.
Snatch theft such mobile purse snatching is common.
Criminal activities in Addis Ababa is safer than to most African cities.
However, there was report of some minor crimes in the city.
Scams, petty theft and mugging are the commonplace and there is smaller number of incidents such as sexual harassment of women and robbery.
Criminal gangs are known to use distraction technique including begging or feigning illness.
Socioeconomic factors can influence people's lives and their behavior and subsequent youth unemployment leads to crime in Addis Ababa, with particular reference to Addis Ketema sub-city woreda 8.
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