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Women Most Often Killed By Partners
Looking at the five years from 2021 to 2025, investigators managed to identify a suspect in 96 percent of female murder cases. Out of these, half involved a partner or former partner as the accused killer, a pattern that has stayed remarkably steady for the last 15 years. The risk appears even sharper for women aged between 20 and 60, where partner or ex-partner involvement was suspected in 63 percent of cases.
Beyond partners, family members were linked to 18 percent of female killings, while 16 percent involved someone else the victim knew personally, such as a friend or acquaintance. Strangers, meanwhile, accounted for just 9 percent of cases, showing that for women, danger is far more likely to come from someone close to them rather than an outsider.
Men Face Different Risks, Often From Acquaintances
The picture looks quite different for male victims. Police identified a suspect in 86 percent of male murder cases. Acquaintances were behind nearly 30 percent of these killings, while strangers were responsible for about 15 percent. Notably, 11 percent of male murders were tied to scores being settled within criminal circles, a reminder that organised crime still plays a role in the country's violence statistics.
Child Victims and City-Wise Breakdown
The data also revealed a heartbreaking figure: 24 children under the age of 10 were murdered between 2021 and 2025. In one out of every five of these cases, a parent was the suspected perpetrator.
When it comes to location, Rotterdam recorded the highest number of murder and manslaughter cases over the five years, with 65 incidents, followed closely by Amsterdam at 62. The Hague reported 36 cases, and Utrecht saw 12. Together, these four major cities made up a quarter of all murders nationwide. On a regional level, Noord-Holland and Zuid-Holland reported the highest number of victims, while Friesland and Flevoland had the fewest.
