Burglaries have decreased, while the seizure of drugs increased and a crackdown on human trafficking netted more suspects, the Interior Ministry said in a monthly press briefing on crime.

Deputy Interior Minister İsmail Çataklı said a comparison of the first six months of 2018 and this year for crime statistics indicated a decline. "For instance, an average number of burglaries dropped to 42 from 57 daily in Istanbul within the first six months of 2019 compared to the same period last year. In Ankara, it dropped to six from 14. Countrywide, it displayed a 16 percent decline," Çataklı said. He added that there was also a 9 percent decline in crimes against property. Car thefts dropped 39 percent in the same period.

In the fight against drugs, Çataklı said 12,400 people were arrested in drug-related crimes between January and June 2019, and authorities seized more than 10 tons of heroin, 20 tons of cannabis and 1,107 kilograms of cocaine. "In cocaine seizures, there is a 381 percent increase in the first six months of this year compared to the first six months of 2018," Çataklı added.

As for the fight against illegal migration, Çataklı said 23,195 illegal migrants were stopped in June, and 3,262 of them were intercepted at sea while heading to Europe from Turkish shores. He said 622 human smugglers were detained last month. He noted that more than 137,000 illegal migrants were stopped in the first six months of 2019 and 3,776 human smugglers were detained.