The number of child-related incidents handled by security units in Türkiye fell slightly in 2025, with children continuing to be recorded primarily as victims rather than suspects, official data showed on Tuesday.
According to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat), security units recorded 609,959 incidents involving children last year, a 0.4% decrease compared to 2024.
Children were most frequently brought to security units as victims, accounting for 267,794 cases, or 43.9% of the total. Another 196,308 children were referred after allegedly committing offenses, while 92,301 were brought in to provide information. Authorities also handled 18,554 cases involving children who had previously been reported missing and were later found, 28,251 children accused of misdemeanors and 6,751 cases involving other reasons.
Assault was the most common offense attributed to children accused of crimes, accounting for 41.6% of cases. Theft followed at 14.7%, while 9.7% involved the use, sale or purchase of narcotic or stimulant substances. Threat-related offenses made up 5.1% of the total.
The data also showed that most child victims had suffered criminal offenses. Of the 267,794 children recorded as victims, 83.9% were victims of crimes, while 16.1% were involved in incidents requiring official follow-up.
Among the 224,579 children identified as crime victims, 59.2% were victims of assault, making it the most common offense. Sexual crimes accounted for 10.3% of cases, followed by crimes against family order at 8.5% and threats at 5%. The remaining 17% involved other types of offenses.
