CRIMINOLOGICAL ANALYSIS AND CRIME TRENDS DURING AND AFTER THE PANDEMIC IN RUSSIAN FEDERATION AND REPUBLIC OF BULGARIA

Abstract

Aim. Criminological analysis of criminality of the first pandemic months of 2020 in European countries. Methodology. The method of comparative analysis of statistic data of official sources of the Russian Federation and Bulgaria for January-April 2020 was used. Results. A significant change in the structure of crime as a whole was revealed - a decrease in some indicators and an increase in others. The first month of the pandemic witnessed a significant decrease in a number of «street» types of crimes and, above all, an increase in the rates of cybercrime. Since the second month of quarantine, the number of crimes has grown significantly: IT frauds, domestic violence and theft. Research implications. The study revealed the impact of the social environment changed as a result of emergency on crime, the need to study the limit of the use of law enforcement agencies to ensure public order (in pandemic or other «risky» or emergency situations), the conditions for achieving balance and maintaining the confidence of citizens in curbing the growth of crime. The analysis of crime statistics and changes in the socio-economic sphere of Russia and Bulgaria for January-April 2020 can be used in crime forecasting in the near future.