In 2008, just over 66,300 bicycle thefts were reported in Sweden, representing a reduction of 31 percent in ten years.
The level of hidden criminality as regards bicycle theft is relatively high and is also changing over time, primarily due to changing insurance conditions.
According to an international crime victim survey, a high proportion (7.2 percent) of Sweden’s population have been victims of cycle theft compared to other countries included in the study, with the exception of the Netherlands. The reporting of cycle theft is most common in the counties of Gotland, Västmanland and Skåne.
Diagram: Reported bicycle thefts in Sweden for the last ten years
The low proportion of suspects and cleared-up crimes means that it is difficult to say anything about the suspected perpetrators with any certainty. However, studies indicate that there are elements of both opportunist crime and more organised crime.
Only one percent of all bicycle thefts are cleared up with person-based clearance. This means that the public prosecutor, after the investigation, has a justifiable suspect, and that the prosecutor has decided to prosecute, has declined to prosecute (may happen for example if the person is under 18 years of age or if the crime is minor) or has opted for a summary court order (fines and/or conditional judgements).
As bicycle theft is not a specific legal category, it is not possible to determine from the statistics the number of people against whom actions have been brought for bicycle theft.
