Tara Murray
Criminal offences dropped by more than five per cent in Brimbank in the year to March, according to new Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) data.
The data, which was released last week, shows there were 19,099 criminal offences recorded in Brimbank in the 12 months to March, down from 20,138 offences from the previous 12 months – a drop of 5.2 per cent.
However, criminal offences rose in St Albans and Deer Park.
There were 4365 criminal offences reported in St Albans, up from 3918 in the year prior, while 1826 offences were reported in Deer Park, up from 1696.
Stealing from a motor vehicle remains the most common offence in Brimbank, despite a drop in the number of cases from the previous 12 months.
According to CSA, there were 2114 thefts from a motor vehicle in Brimbank in the year to March, down from 2364 in the previous 12 months.
Other theft (1693 offences), breach of family violence orders (1681), public health and safety offences (1674) and criminal damage (1131) rounded out the top five offences in Brimbank in the data period.
Family violence incidents rose by 1.2 per cent, with an additional 35 cases on the previous 12 months.
Across the state, the number of victims of crime experiencing family violence-related offending was the highest ever recorded, driven predominantly by increases in family violence common assault., CSA said.
CSA chief statistician Fiona Dowsley said that family violence offences were on the rise as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Victoria has recorded the highest ever number of family incidents and family violence-related criminal offences during this period,” she said.
“The number of family violence-related victim reports has continued to increase, while other types of victim reports decreased over the past 12 months. This increase in family violence-related victimisation has been seen for the last three years, reflecting more than pandemic-related impacts.”
