Brimbank residents can expect more officers on the streets as police address a rise in assaults, robberies and overall crime.
Data released last week reveals that home burglary and theft from
motor vehicles continues to decline, despite an 8.8 per cent increase in
total crime last financial year.
But drug offences were up 41 per cent from 909 incidents the previous year to 1282 and assaults, excluding family violence, rose 21.5 per cent.
And there was a 19.7 per cent increase in robberies, from 234 incidents to 280.
Inspector Chris Gilbert said an 18.5 per cent fall in home
burglaries, from 1839 incidents to 1498, was directly related to the
work of the city’s burglary unit.
“It’s our most encouraging result,” he said. “Property crime,
including arson, has also fallen more than 5 per cent over the
comparative period.
“Petrol theft is a dominating factor in our overall crime.”
Figures also show a 10.1 per cent drop in thefts from motor vehicles, down from 2708 to 2434.
Inspector Gilbert said while robberies fell by 6.7 per in the year
to April, they rose 19.7 per cent for the year to June. “Some of the
gains we’ve made in robberies have slowed, and we have seen a rise since
last quarter,” Inspector Gilbert said. “[But] long-term trends around
robbery, and crimes against the person generally, are still good and
are far below the high level of 2010-11.”
He said Brimbank would get more police as part of the state
government commitment to add 1700 officers across Victoria by November
next year.
Protective service officers were used at Albion train station last
week, patrolling from 6pm to the last train every night. They have
already been deployed at Sydenham, Sunshine and St Albans.
