The streets around Manneken Pis and the Grand Place fill with tourists every year, creating a lively atmosphere that also attracts pickpockets, an age-old crime now targeting smartphones, wallets, and other personal belongings. After years of steady increases, petty crime in Brussels and other European capitals continues to rise.

Note: Petty thefts often go unreported, so actual numbers may be higher.

 

The Rise of the Quick Hands

The Federal Police’s annual report, published last year, showed that petty crimes in Brussels continued to rise in 2023 compared to the year before, with pickpocketing increasing by almost 20 percent in the Brussels-Capital Region.

Since the beginning of 2024, Brussels’ local police specialists known as “Trekkers”, plainclothes officers dedicated to tracking and apprehending pickpockets, have caught 377 offenders in the act. Figures that were announced by Mayor Philippe Close during the last city council meeting before the installation of the new administration in 2024. Most of these incidents occurred in the central Pentagon area, the historic heart of Brussels defined by the five main boulevards encircling the city centre. Where narrow streets, tourist attractions, and bustling squares meet. As of now, no reliable or finalized figures are available for this year, leaving the current trend for this year unclear.

Despite that these numbers are not jet published, the increase is being felt not just by the police, but also by local tourism services. “We see more and more tourists coming in visibly upset, saying they’ve just been robbed and asking us to call the police because they don’t know what to do,” said an employee of Visit Brussels. “Most of the time, they’ve been robbed in the small streets surrounding the Grand Place.” Visit Brussels office is located on the Grand Place itself, just steps away from where many of the incidents occur.

 

Trust and Urban Design

According to Eric Corijn, professor of Urban Studies at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), the presence of minor crime in Brussels’ busiest tourist areas is not unexpected. He notes that the combination of tourists and dense public spaces creates opportunities for crime. “Crowded tourist places or public transport are also the places for pickpockets and also other forms of tourist traps like selling less qualitative merchandise or food.”

The structure of Brussels’ historic centre further shapes this dynamic. “Of course density offers opportunities for pickpockets,” Corijn explains, yet he emphasises that these older neighbourhoods are also what make the city appealing. “These older city centers with small streets are urban attractors for tourists. So ‘modernizing’ these urban areas for security reasons is not a good option.”

Rather than attempting to alter the city’s historic fabric, Corijn points out that the foundation of public safety lies in building trust. “Security in the public domain must create trust,” he says. According to him, this is achieved through visible observation, such as police or guards, combined with social presence and well-designed public spaces that are clean, well-lit, and free of unnecessary obstacles.

A European Pattern

Even do there is a increase in pickpocketing in Brussels the numbers are not much compared to other European capitals. According to official safety reports published by Censis, there where around 33 thousand cases of pickpocketing in Rome in 2024, a sharp 68 percent increase compared to 2019. This would be translated to nearly 100 pickpocketing incidents each day.

In comparison, Barcelona also saw a rise in petty theft, with pickpocketing accounting for 48 percent of all reported crimes in 2023, as noted by the Barcelona City Council. Compared with the previous year, incidents increased by more then 6 percent. Following the return of tourists after COVID‑19 restrictions, which had previously caused a sharp decline in street crimes.

In the video below, Taro Roncalés, founder of AdvenTours, shares how tour guides perceive Brussels’ safety and witness its growth in petty crimes.