Brohl-Sowa and the head of the Bad Godesberg police department Ralf Rheidt attribute the sinking numbers to police presence and intervention. “We will continue on in this way because we believe it is useful and it is very important,” said Brohl-Sowa. The strategy also accounts for one statistic rising and that is narcotics violations. The police chief said that the more active police are in this area, the more violations they find. There were nearly 300 violations, most of them involving cannabis.

One strategy police have used to ensure more security is banning identified repeat offenders from certain parks and public areas in the summer months. They are currently looking at whether a ban from the Christmas market would also make sense. Despite “the large fluctuation of young people” who attend school in Bad Godesberg, the situation has altogether become more calm, reports Rheidt.

There are around ten to 20 repeat offenders, and they come from other districts. Through police controls, law enforcers say they are aware of which people are hanging out together and at which times, and there is nothing which would be comparable with a gang.

Nationwide, Bonn has moved from number one for home break-ins in 2013 to somewhere in the middle field. In 52 percent of cases, burglary attempts were foiled and the police chief praised residents for well-securing their homes. Another positive statistic was the number of traffic accidents which decreased from 140 last year to 113 this year.

(Orig. text: Bettina Köhl. Translation: Carol Kloeppel)