OSNOVNE KARAKTERISTIKE KRIMINALA MALOLETNIKA U VEZI SA DROGAMA I PROBLEMI NJEGOVOG EVIDENTIRANJA
BASIC CHARACTERISTICS OF JUVENILE DRUG-RELATED CRIME AND PROBLEMS OF ITS RECORDING

Summary/Abstract: Familiarity with the basic phenomenological characteristics of crime in general, including juvenile delinquency, is of crucial importance for selecting preventive interventions. Since official statistics represent one of the key sources of information on these characteristics, their analysis can greatly assist in this selection. The importance of this topic is further underscored by the fact that, in recent years, there have been changes in the structure of juvenile crime. Although property offenses still predominate, offenses involving elements of violence—particularly drug-related crimes—are gradually gaining increasing significance. The subject of this paper is the analysis of the phenomenological characteristics of drug-related juvenile delinquency in the territory of the Republic of Serbia over a ten-year period (2015–2024). The main objective of the research is to determine a realistic picture of juvenile crime, with special emphasis on criminal offenses defined in the Criminal Code of the Republic of Serbia under Articles 246, 246a, and 247. Using the method of descriptive statistics, the study analyzes statistical data obtained from the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Serbia regarding the number, types, and other characteristics of criminal offenses under Chapter 23 of the Criminal Code, committed by individuals under the age of 18. Data on the distribution of these offenses across individual police departments in the Republic of Serbia were also analyzed. The aim of the paper is to provide, through statistical indicators from the Ministry of the Interior, along with their description and discussion, basic guidelines for creating measures for the prevention and suppression of juvenile delinquency. The analysis of these data confirmed the initial assumptions—that the number of criminal offenses committed by juveniles under this chapter of the Criminal Code is increasing, that it has been highest in the last two years of the observed period, and that among these offenses, the most prevalent is the offense under Article 246a (Unauthorized Possession of Narcotic Drugs). However, juveniles are increasingly participating in the commission of the offense under Article 246 (Unauthorized Production and Trafficking of Narcotic Drugs). Among the perpetrators, older male juveniles predominate, although there are also offenders below the age of criminal responsibility, as well as a notable number of female offenders.

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