Almost the same gunshot victims in half a year as in all of 2025 in Catalonia
Crime has decreased by 7.6% in the first half of the year, despite sexual offenses being at all-time highs
BarcelonaJust a month ago in the Bon Pastor neighborhood of Barcelona, two people were evacuated to Vall d'Hebron Hospital with gunshot wounds. A street argument in broad daylight ended with one person seriously injured and another slightly injured who was hit by a ricocheting bullet. Like them, up to 27 people have been injured by firearms in the first half of the year in Catalonia, just one less than in all of 2025. The same applies to firearm deaths: last year there were eight, and this year seven people have already lost their lives to a firearm. The Government attributes a large part of the proliferation of firearms to drug trafficking and calls for harsher penalties for their illicit possession and also for large marijuana plantations.
"This is a proposal that we make from police experience, that is, from what we are encountering and from the critical elements we observe and how we believe we can neutralize them," assured the Minister of the Interior, Núria Parlon, who explained that she has already forwarded the proposal to her Spanish counterpart, Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska. She explained this to the media before entering the 9th Security and Justice Committee, where they reviewed the crime data for the first half of the year. According to data from the Mossos d'Esquadra, between January and June, 266,197 criminal offenses were registered in Catalonia, 21,911 fewer than in the first half of 2025, which represents a decrease of 7.6%.
The minister also announced a change in how crime data will be presented. From now on, the main indicators will be compared with the average of the previous four years, instead of year by year, to better identify structural trends. Thus, the data for the first half of 2026 will be compared with the average between 2022 and 2025. This way, if a type of crime experiences a sudden increase and then slightly decreases the following year, they ensure that the increase experienced in previous years is represented within the average when conducting the comparative study to see its evolution.
More crimes for injuries
Crimes against sexual freedom, which have remained at their highest levels in recent years during the first half of 2026, contrast with the general decrease in crime. During the first half of the year, 2,254 were recorded, only three less than the 2,257 in the same period of 2025, but 15.1% more than the average for the first half-years of the 2022-2025 period. "It is worrying," stated Parlon, who argues that these behaviors are not resolved solely through police intervention, but require a joint approach between different departments. In this regard, the minister announced that the Interior Department will reinforce specialized units for the detection of sexual violence and victim support units throughout the territory.
Another of the negative aspects of the balance of these first six months is the increase in assault crimes, which have increased by 9.1% compared to the average of the last four years, with almost 10,000 criminal offenses of this type recorded.
In contrast, the improvement registered at El Prat Airport stands out, where crime has decreased by 69.1% compared to last year, according to the comparative study presented by the Interior Department. Parlon attributed this evolution to increased police presence, restraining orders against habitual offenders, and the implementation of the Kanpai plan. This same plan has also contributed, according to the minister, to reducing property crime in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, where this type of crime has decreased by around 10%. In this case, she attributed the improvement to the coordination between the Mossos d'Esquadra and the Guàrdia Urbana and to the intensification of police presence in neighborhoods with the highest recidivism, although she warned that this trend will need to be consolidated.