A heated debate has erupted in Germany after Dirk Peglow, head of the Federal Association of German Detectives (BDK), said in a TV interview that women should “better not get into a relationship with a man.”
Peglow made the comment Monday while discussing new criminal statistics showing an 8.5% rise in rape, sexual assault and other particularly serious sexual offenses. When ZDF host Dunja Hayali asked what advice he’d give women, Peglow replied: “Better not get into a relationship with a man. If you do, the risk is much higher of becoming a victim of psychological or physical violence.”
He told ZDF that in 2024 “statistically at least two women per day were victims of homicide or attempted homicide, and things look the same with sexual offenses.” In a later interview with Bild, Peglow downplayed his remark as an exaggeration and said it was “not meant as advice to be taken literally,” adding that “the overwhelming majority of men are not violent and are not criminals.”
Hayali told Focus Online that both she and Peglow had received threats after the broadcast. “Now there are men who do not criticize the rise in violence against women but instead express violent fantasies and threats of violence against my interview partner and me,” she said.
The crime figures have also drawn attention because of a high rate of offenses by foreigners, a statistic experts urge caution in interpreting. Although reports of violent crime, including rape and sexual assault, were up, the total number of recorded criminal offenses in Germany fell by 4.4%.
Edited by: Sean Sinico