Complacent to crime

Complacent attitudes towards locking vehicles and homes is being blamed for continued increases in crime statistics across Baw Baw police service es area, particularly thefts from cars.

Crime Statistics Agency figures released last week showed a 7.5 per cent increase in recorded offences for the 12 month period ending March 31.

There were 4838 offences recorded for the period, up 7.5 per cent from 4502 for the same period last year.

Two positive results were in crimes against the person which dropped 7.6 per cent and family violence incidents were down 10.5 per cent.

Warragul senior sergeant Peter Shallard said the family violence unit had been in place in Baw Baw for several years and was working closely with victims.

He said their work, particularly in targeting recidivist offenders, had driven the statistics down which was a positive result.

The two hotspot areas continue to be thefts from cars and burglaries.

Thefts from cars was the highest recorded offences with one third of the total thefts being thefts from cars at 558 offences.

The statistics showed a 19 per cent increase in thefts from 1263 to 1508 compared to the previous 12-month period, while burglaries increase a massive 69 per cent. Up from 314 to 533.

Sen Sgt Shallard said community members were complacent and needed to be re-educated on the need to lock their vehicles, garages, sheds and homes.

“It’s not an issue that we as police can deal with on our own, we genuinely need the community to do more. If the community isn’t prepared to help us, we are fighting a losing battle.

“We get sick of seeing the statistics and it’s frustrating that the overwhelming number of thefts are unlocked vehicles.

“People are targeting these vehicles because they know they aren’t being locked.

“Offenders move around at night targeting unlocked vehicles, garages, sheds and even houses. It’s not opportunistic, it is absolutely targeting unlocked vehicles and homes,” he said.

Total crime across the region has more than doubled in the past 10 years, jumping 148 per cent since 2011 when 1946 offences were recorded.

The breakdown of offences across the three main towns was 2033 in Warragul, 1431 in Drouin and 372 in Trafalgar.

More than 1400 of the offences occurred at homes, while 682 occurred on a street or footpath and another 242 in in driveways.

Sen Sgt Shallard said the upward trend of crime reflected continued population growth in the region.

He said there were a lot of factors the caused crime to increase but generally, in Baw Baw, the rapid population growth was a big factor.

“We are getting quite a number of burglaries and a number of those are houses under construction because there is a lot of construction underway.

“When you look at how rapidly Drouin, Warragul and Trafalgar are expanding, it’s not surprising,” he said.

Total drug offences increased 20.4 per cent, up from 348 to 419. The majority were drug use and possession offences at 349 and 53 drug dealing and trafficking offences.

Sen Sgt Shallard said increased staff at Drouin station had enabled more pro-active policing and responses.

He said additional resources allowed more police to be out and about across the area, and therefore more active in intercepting vehicles.

Sen Sgt Shallard said the increased drug offences meant police had detected more drugs in the community and charged more people, which was a positive result.