Complaints filed with the Inspectorate-General of Internal Administration (IGAI) against the conduct of security forces increased by around 60% over six years, totaling 1,722 last year, with officers from the PSP being the most targeted.
From 2020 to 2025, the number of administrative proceedings originating from complaints, reports, and participations submitted to IAI has grown annually, with identical values recorded only in 2022 and 2023, while 2025 saw another rise in the number of cases, IGAI notes in last year’s report, which has now been published on the agency’s website.
The document indicates that, over six years, complaints against bodies supervised by the Ministry of Internal Administration (MAI), namely the PSP and GNR, rose from 1,072 in 2020 to 1,722 in 2025. According to the report, 1,174 complaints were submitted to IGAI in 2021, increasing to 1,436 the following year, a figure that remained steady in 2023 before rising again to 1,511 in 2024 and reaching 1,722 last year.
The body that oversees police activity adds that PSP officers were the most targeted, with 880 complaints, followed by GNR military personnel, with 524. IGAI also received 19 complaints concerning other entities under MAI supervision and 299 targeting entities outside of MAI oversight.
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The majority of the reports are related to the violation of duties of conduct, meaning incorrect procedures or behavior, totaling 775, and offenses against physical integrity, totaling 438, which correspond to 45.01% and 25.44% of the registered total respectively, IGAI indicates.
Regarding complaints related to the violation of duties of conduct, 437 concerned PSP officers and 276 concerned GNR personnel, while 281 reports of offenses against physical integrity involved the PSP and 131 involved the GNR. IGAI also received 84 complaints of abuse of authority, 44 of which were against the PSP and 31 against the GNR.
Last year, the body also received four complaints related to discriminatory practices by PSP agents and three by GNR personnel. It is worth noting that there are no records of situations involving illegal detention or crimes against personal and sexual freedom, and there is only one record of a death, while domestic violence situations maintained the exact same number of records at 41, IGAI specifies.
The document adds that most complaints were submitted by citizens, totaling 1,020, followed by judicial authorities through the issuance of certificates, totaling 286, and the Directorate-General for Reintegration and Prison Services, totaling 248.
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In addition to the administrative proceedings opened by IGAI originating from complaints, the Inspectorate-General of Internal Administration also initiates misdemeanor, disciplinary, and investigative proceedings. IGAI mentions that since 2020 there has been a constant increase in the total number of proceedings initiated, which rose from 1,248 in 2020 to 1,804, with only 2023 recording a slight decrease.
The Inspectorate-General of Internal Administration attributes this growth to the rise in administrative cases.
Last year, IGAI initiated 46 disciplinary proceedings, consisting of 14 inquiry proceedings and 32 disciplinary proceedings, and applied eight penalties to PSP and GNR personnel last year, which is the lowest figure since 2021, a year when 41 were opened, increasing to 84 in 2022, dropping to 65 the following year, and falling again to 51 in 2024.
The disciplinary proceedings opened by the police oversight body can lead to investigation, inquiry, inspection, and disciplinary proceedings, depending on the nature of the situations that prompt them.
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The data shows, however, that the 32 disciplinary proceedings, which are the most severe, initiated in 2025 increased slightly compared to 2024 by an additional nine, but were fewer than in 2023 when there were 45 and 2022 when there were 53.
Regarding disciplinary proceedings opened following the use of firearms, IGAI highlights that last year there were records of two people injured and three killed as a result of actions by the security forces.
According to IGAI, two people were injured and two others were killed by the PSP, while another person was killed by the GNR, a death toll identical to that of 2024. Last year, IGAI opened 15 disciplinary proceedings resulting from offenses against physical integrity, 12 of which involved PSP agents and three involved GNR personnel, which is 17 fewer than in 2024.
The document also indicates that IGAI applied eight disciplinary penalties last year, the lowest number since 2021, a year in which penalties totaled 12, rising to 13 in both 2022 and 2023, and reaching 19 in 2024.
