Baby boomers have the highest crime rate in Korea by age group, which is unusual as in most countries the crime rate peaks among those in their late teens.

Jeong Eun-gyeong, assistant professor for police administration in Youngsan University, said in her thesis that according to 2007 crime statistics, people in that generation had the highest crime rate regarding violence and property with over 30 percent more cases than teenagers.

On the other hand, 18-year-olds had the highest crime rates in the United States according to FBI statistics, with crime rates about five times higher than for those in their 40s.

Jung speculated that the age group had a high crime rate due to their difficult lives.

Baby boomers, born between 1955 and 1963, were born soon after the war but before the government promoted birth control. Korean society was not able to supply enough jobs for them in their youth, the IMF crisis threatene d their livelihoods in their late thirties and early forties, and they continue to face financial pressure to support their college-aged children today without any stable plans for retirement.

Jung pointed out that baby boomers have consistently had the highest crime rates, as people in their thirties also had the highest crime rate in the 1990s, and points out that Korea needs measures to prevent elderly crimes.

(sangyj@heraldcorp.com)