Crime rate down in South Gippsland, Bass Coast

THE rate of family violence incidents has fallen by 9.1% across Bass Coast and the overall crime rate in South Gippsland is down 6.7%, part of a state-wide trend which police have described as “incredibly positive”.

While there has been a slight increase in the total number of family violence incidents in South Gippsland, up by 1.5% from 532-540, the number of crime incidents overall has fallen from 1284 to 1198 in the local government area (LGA), down 6.7%.

Also, on a pleasing note for South Gippsland, police are laying charges in 45.7% of the criminal incidents they investigate, with only 54.3% of detected crimes either unresolved or not having charges laid.

The figure of crimes resolved isn’t quite so good in Bass Coast.

Of the criminal incidents detected in Bass Coast, just 38% result in charges while a concerning number of incidents are either unresolved or don’t result in charges being laid.

In both South Gippsland and Bass Coast, the top criminal incident is “breach of family violence intervention orders”; 181 incidents in South Gippsland and 246 in Bass Coast.

Criminal damage is the next most significant crime category in both LGAs with 149 incidents in South Gippsland and 231 in Bass Coast for the year ending June 2022.

One area of criminal activity that is higher in Bass Coast than South Gippsland is the number of non-aggravated residential burglaries, that is criminals entering homes when the owners aren’t there.

There were 148 such incidents detected in Bass Coast, indicative of the number of unattended holiday homes in the LGA.

State crime down 10%

In the 12 months to end of June 2022, across Victoria, there were 469,506 criminal offences recorded representing a decrease of 52,139 offences or 10% from the same twelve-month period in 2021.

This represents the lowest number of criminal offences committed in the year since 2014.

“While the Victorian pandemic restrictions that began to lift in October 2021 curbed criminal offending in the early months of this reporting period, it remains incredibly positive to see a steady decline across the vast majority of offence categories,” said a police spokesperson.

“Each victim of crime is one too many and that is why we are pleased to see the lowest number of victims since the introduction of the Law Enforcement Assistance Program in 1993.

“In this 12-month reporting period, there were 164,104 victims of crime – 38,280 less people than the same period in 2017.

“It was also pleasing to see a reduction in the number of offenders processed compared to the year prior. 83,506 people were processed last year which resulted in arrests or offenders charged on summons, cautioned, or issued with fines. This represented a decrease of 6,481 unique offenders from the year prior.

“Serious and violent crimes across Victoria were also down, with a 3.7% reduction in the overall number of crimes committed against another person.”

A number of serious offences impacting personal safety and wellbeing decreased, including:

* Robberies were at their lowest rates since 2005, with a decrease of 7% year-on-year. Robberies continue to be driven by youth offenders, with more than three quarters of all robberies committed by people under the age of 24. Many of these offences are often connected to youth street gangs, who Victoria Police continue to systematically dismantle and disrupt as part of Operation Alliance. As part of the operation, police will continue to saturate known hotspots, such as railway stations and shopping centres, to prevent offences such as robberies from occurring.

* Family violence offending continued to decrease, with a 3.1% reduction in family violence incidents recorded (90,553 incidents, down 2,882 incidents from year prior). There were also 3,631 less family violence orders breached from the previous twelve-month reporting period – a decrease of 6.6%. Given the sharp increase in family violence throughout the pandemic, it is positive to see a reduction in this form of offending, however police are treating these figures with caution as family violence can often go unreported for significant periods of time.

* Overall assaults were down 859 offences from the year prior, with family violence serious assaults, family violence common assaults, non-family violence serious assaults and assault police or other emergency services worker offences all reducing. Non-family violence common assaults did however record an increase, in line with increased assaults in or surrounding licensed premises. Across the state, we have teams of police in every entertainment district walking the streets, patrolling the roads, and conducting venue checks. As well as having a significant presence on the street, officers proactively engage with venue owners and operators to make sure they are abiding by responsible service of alcohol. This work will continue to ensure everyone gets home safely.

* The total number of firearm offences in Victoria decreased by 232 offences in the twelve months to end of June 2022, while prohibited weapon offences (including knives) decreased by 9.5% or 976 offences. Taskforce VIPER, Armed Crime, Echo Taskforce, and the Illicit Firearms Unit will continue to target those inflicting firearm related harm by removing illicit firearms from the community and imposing Firearm Prohibition Orders. Significant knife related harm is often connected to street gangs who remain firmly in Victoria Police’s sights as part of Operation Alliance.

Crime against property down

Overall property and deception offences also experienced a significant decrease, recording their lowest offence count since the introduction of the Law Enforcement Assistance Program in 1993. Key drivers for this decrease included:

* Residential burglaries were at their lowest levels since the introduction of the Law Enforcement Assistance Program in 1993. In the twelve months to June 2022, there were 19,927 home burglaries – 15,565 less homes than were broken into in 2017 (35,492). While overall home burglaries were at record lows, residential aggravated burglaries did increase by 309 offences year-on-year. This can largely be attributed to the increased likelihood of people being home due to WFH arrangements, sickness due to COVID or the flu and COVID restrictions. By definition, aggravated burglaries require the occupant to be home, hence they were more likely to occur due to the aforementioned circumstances. While having an intruder in your home is undoubtedly an unnerving and frightening experience, we know the vast majority of these offences involve no interaction between the offender and the people inside the home, with intelligence suggesting more than 9 in 10 aggravated burglaries occur with no confrontation and more times than not, the occupant does not even sight the offender. On the rare occasion that a confrontation occurs, our intelligence indicates this is most commonly an argument between parties known, or an offender making demands for car keys – violent aggravated burglaries are extremely rare.

* Overall theft related offences were also at their lowest levels since the introduction of the Law Enforcement Assistance Program in 1993. This was reflected in significant reductions in vehicle crime, with the lowest number of cars stolen in Victoria since 2011. There were 14,670 cars stolen last year – by comparison, there were 22,253 cars stolen five years prior. Pleasingly, the lowest number of cars were broken into since 2013. Almost half of all theft from motor vehicle offences showed no visible force, while one in three theft from motor vehicle offences related to theft of number plates.

Drug offences down

Overall drug related offending also decreased, including:

* Drug dealing/trafficking offences decreased by 1,410 offences, while cultivate/manufacture offences decreased by 495 offences. Possess/use drugs also decreased by 5,237 offences. This reduction is largely due to the significant increase in the detection rates of drug traffickers and those found in possession of illicit drugs during Covid lockdowns in the previous reporting period. Over the next 12 months, we remain committed to targeting drug dealers, suppliers, and manufactures to reduce the harm from drugs in the community.

Deputy Commissioner Regional Operations Rick Nugent said the figures were a “positive sign”

“Continued low crime rates are a positive sign as we move further away from the restrictions imposed during the pandemic, which we know impacted the ability for criminals to offend,” Mr Nugent said.

“In perhaps the most pleasing sign, we saw the lowest number of victims of crime in Victoria since the introduction of the Law Enforcement Assistance Program in 1993. Our members pull on the blue uniform every day to keep the community safe and will continue to do everything possible to prevent innocent people from becoming a victim of crime.

“There are plenty of encouraging signs – the lowest number of home burglaries since 1993, least robberies since 2005, lowest number of cars stolen since 2011, decreasing family violence rates, less assaults, and reduced numbers of firearm and weapon offences.

“Our focus will remain steadfast on ensuring the community not is only safe but feels safe.

“Victoria Police will retain an intense focus on those causing the most harm - from Taskforce VIPER hitting organised crime outfits where it hurts, to Operation Alliance dismantling youth gangs, to Operation Achilles targeting dangerous driving on our roads, we have never been better placed to curb crime.

“Our Neighbourhood Policing Model will also ensure local police are tackling the local issues the community care most about, resulting in more visible police, targeted police interventions to fix issues, and open communication with community members.”