SINGAPORE, Feb 24 — The island republic recorded a higher number of physical crime cases last year, with 20,857 cases, up 4.4 per cent from 19,969 cases in the preceding year, according to the Singapore Police Force (SPF).
In its annual crime brief, SPF said outrage of modesty, one of the top crimes of concern, increased 7.3 per cent to 1,521 last year from 1,427 cases in 2024.
“More than half of the outrage of modesty cases involved offenders known to the victims. There was a decrease in the number of cases in shopping complexes,” it said, adding that residential premises, the public transport network, and public entertainment outlets listed were the top three locations where the offence occurred.
Meanwhile, although the number of theft in dwelling cases decreased by 0.9 per cent to 1,500 cases in 2025, it remains a crime of concern, accounting for about 7.2 per cent of the total number of physical crime cases in the republic.
“Most of the cases involved fellow dormitory residents who shared the same room as the victims, and took their personal items without permission while the victims were asleep or preoccupied,” the SPF said, noting that shop theft and voyeurism recorded fewer cases in 2025.
Shop theft cases fell by three per cent to 4,109 last year from 4,237 in 2024, while voyeurism cases declined by 6.4 per cent to 486 in 2025 from 519 in the previous year.
SPF director of operations SAC Leon Chan said that crime in Singapore remains under control, attributable to the public's vigilance and the community's active involvement.
"In 2025, there were encouraging declines in offences such as shop theft and voyeurism, underscoring how vital community engagement and proactive crime prevention are to public safety.
"We are pleased to see more stakeholders adopting technologies that help to identify offenders and strengthen their crime prevention capabilities, as we have seen in the retail industry," he said.
The police also encouraged the public to stay alert and report suspicious activities, as public partnership is essential to keeping the neighbourhoods safe.
