Police Work in the Field of Crime Investigation during COVID-19 in Slovenia with Emphasis on the First Wave of the Epidemic in Spring 2020

Abstract

The article presents an introductory reflection on the COVID-19 epidemic, registered crime and police work in the field of crime investigation, especially during the first wave of the epidemic in the spring of 2020 in Slovenia as compared to the previous year. First, an analysis of recorded crime for the first nine months (January-September) of 2019 and 2020 is performed, followed by comparing the same period in the first wave of the epidemic from March to May 2020. Governmental measures for curbing the epidemic are also presented. The comparisons show that most recorded crimes decreased in Slovenia during the first wave of the epidemic in 2020 and the first nine months of 2020. We also present the opinions of the heads of criminal investigation sectors at the Criminal Police Directorate on the incidence, the nature of criminal offences during the epidemic, and the criminal police responses. The findings indicate the need for additional victimization and self-reporting studies of delinquency, which could be a qualitative supplement to the official statistical data on recorded crime during the COVID-19 epidemic in Slovenia.