National audit reveals police neglect thousands of violent crime cases

A scathing report by Denmark’s national auditor has found that police failed to investigate 13,000 violent crime cases between 2019 and mid-2025, closing them without basic investigative steps, DR reports.

The Rigsrevisionen (National Audit Office) investigation, published Tuesday, also uncovered stark regional disparities in how police handle serious offences—including assaults, rapes, and stalking—with some districts routinely downgrading cases to minor public order violations.

One victim, Dean Coles, told DR that Fyn Police dismissed his 2022 assault—leaving him with a broken nose and eye socket—without interviewing witnesses or filing a violence report. Officers allegedly claimed he was drunk, though Coles, a pub owner, stated he does not drink while working. His case was only reopened after media coverage.

“They said, ‘We already know what the witnesses will say,’” Coles recounted. “It’s unacceptable that where you live decides whether police take your case seriously.”

The audit found that 29% of nightlife assaults nationwide were logged as public order offences rather than violent crimes—rising to 30% in Fyn but just 18% in Copenhagen. In a sample of 200 “disturbance” cases, 22 should have been classified as assaults. Similar discrepancies appeared in rape and stalking cases, where lower-charge classifications reduced investigative requirements.

Mette Abildgaard, chair of the cross-party Statsrevisorerne (Auditors General), called the variations “unjustifiable” for a small country. “Nothing excuses these differences,” she said, while colleague Monika Rubin starkly noted she would “rather be raped in Copenhagen than Fyn” due to the disparity in case handling.

Fyn Police acknowledged the criticism, pledging to “tighten procedures.” National Police Commissioner Thisted has not yet responded to the findings.

The auditors urged the Justice Ministry to examine whether some districts systematically underreport nighttime violence. Coles, whose assailant was eventually arrested, welcomed the scrutiny: “People plan where to live based on schools—not whether the local police will help them. That’s wrong.”