Nearly 50 people charged in police operation

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Tara Murray

Nearly 50 people were arrested across Brimbank, Wyndham and Melton as part of a police operation targeting serious and violent criminal offending in the western suburbs.

Uniformed and specialist police, detectives from Brimbank and Melton, Brimbank offender management team and the gang crime squad officers hit the streets late last month as part of Operation Alliance, patrolling known high volume crime areas, conducting compliance checks and apprehending any outstanding offenders.

The operation was the result of a number of aggravated burglaries committed at homes in the Wyndham area.

Police arrested 11 youth offenders and seven individuals with affiliations to youth gangs in the five-day operation.

Between August 24 and August 28, police arrested and charged 46 people for a range of offences including breach of bail, attempted robbery, aggravated burglaries and weapons offences.

Twelve of those people were remanded to appear in court at a later day.

As part of the operation there were 17 search warrants executed across the suburbs including Werribee and Burnside.

There were 70 bail compliance checks, with 18 breaches detected.

Police intercepted and checked 237 vehicles, impounding six, while 39 fines were issued for breaches for the chief health officer directions.

Among those arrested was a 21-year-male from Deer Park who allegedly contravened a bail condition.

A 23-year-old male from Brookfield was observed allegedly robbing a victim of their bicycle and other personal belongings. He was charged with attempted robbery.

A 34-year-old Burnside male and a 31-year-old Werribee male were both charged in relation to a range of offences, including theft of motor vehicle and aggravated burglary after warrants were executed.

During the last four nights of the operation, there was no reported serious and violent non-family violence related crimes or car thefts across Hobsons Bay, Maribyrnong, Wyndham, Brimbank and Melton.

North West Metro Division three Brimbank and Melton Superintendent David Jones said police will continue to monitor persons of interest.

“We know operations such as these significantly improve community safety, with no serious and violent offences or car thefts being committed in these areas across the last four nights of the operation, as police took offenders off the streets and locked them up,” he said.