15-year-old caught shoplifting in Ingolstadt – what now?

15-year-old caught shoplifting in Ingolstadt – what now?

Yesterday evening, June 10, 2025, an incident occurred in Ingolstadt that made the public sit up and take notice. At around 7 p.m., a 15-year-old student was caught shoplifting in the well-known “Ingolstadt Village”. As Pfaffenhofen Today reports, the teenager stole a branded jacket that cost over 400 euros.

A surveillance camera recorded the event and was therefore crucial in uncovering the crime. When the police arrived, a small amount of marijuana was also seized from the teenager. According to current legal practices, the marijuana was “secured to avert danger,” which means that because he is a minor, no criminal proceedings will be initiated for drug possession, as the Frag a Lawyer law firm explains.

Legal implications for minors

The incident highlights the responsibility of parents to supervise their children in public spaces. The parents of the young person are required in this case, as children do not necessarily have to be handed over to the police or parents, unless they are heavily intoxicated children or those under the age of 8. In this case, the boy was picked up from the police station by his father.

The teenager now faces criminal charges for shoplifting, which is not uncommon in Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria when it comes to underage suspects. In Germany, an ongoing discussion about juvenile crime shows that the legal consequences for children under 14 are often not clearly defined, especially for more serious crimes, as the Statista portal shows.

Increase in juvenile crime

The youth crime figures are alarming. Youth violence in Germany will have reached a peak in 2024. With around 13,800 cases, the level of violence was more than twice as high as in 2016. The increase is evident not only among young people under the age of 14, but also among older age groups, such as those aged 14 to 17 and adolescents between 18 and 20 years old.

But there is also positive news: the proportion of young suspects has fallen by a third since 1998. Nevertheless, the situation remains tense, especially since almost three quarters of the young suspects are male. Where do these developments come from? Experts attribute the increasing numbers, among other things, to psychological stress caused by corona measures and risk factors among young people seeking protection.

In order to avoid future cases, greater emphasis is placed on preventive measures to nip the development of criminal histories in the bud. The focus is on child and youth welfare, which is intended to help show young people a better path.

The incident in Ingolstadt Village is not just an isolated case, but rather it is part of a larger issue that affects our society. To what extent can we protect young people and act taking into account the responsibilities of parents and society? That is the question that concerns us all.