The number of people over 55 years of age who are attacked during robberies has risen from 26 in the first quarter of 2011 to 34 in the same period of this year, justice minister Ivo Opstelten told parliament on Tuesday afternoon.

He was responding to a question from a fundamentalist Christian party (SGP) MP who wanted to know if the figures indicated a trend, reports the Volkskrant.
The minister said it is a trend, but that the police have a ‘special focus’ on preventing robberies involving older people. For instance, the government organises information meetings with senior organisations and safety information is broadcast on local television, he said.
Opstelten said the chance of arresting the culprits is now 30% and the number of robberies has fallen by 6% since 2010.
The questions followed the death of an 81-year-old man following an attack on his home at the weekend.