ACT Policing’s latest quarterly crime statistics show a five per cent drop in crime reports across Canberra in 2014, with Belconnen leading the way.
The December quarter 2014 statistics published on the ACT Policing CrimeStatistics webpage today showed total reports of crime were down 5.4 per cent when comparing 2014 with 2013 (excluding statistics for traffic infringement notices and collisions).
Belconnen saw the steepest drop across the calendar year (down 12.1 per cent), followed by the Inner North (down 10.8 per cent), Gungahlin (down 10 per cent) and the Inner South (down six per cent).
Further south, three districts saw a slight increase over the calendar year for the first time in six years; Woden (up 9 per cent), Tuggeranong (up 5.3 per cent) and Weston Creek (up 0.9 per cent). The Molonglo District saw an increase of 21 reports over the calendar year and reports will likely increase as the area expands and becomes populated.
Acting Deputy Chief Police Officer Justine Gough said she was pleased to see the continued reduction in crime across the ACT, resulting from joint ACT Government initiatives, an intelligence-led community policing model and the efforts of the ACT community.
“We’re pleased to see that overall crime reports drop in the ACT, continuing a six-year downward trend. While we’ve seen a slight increase in some of the southern districts, the prevailing trend has been a drop in reports. While Canberra has continued to grow, geographically and in population, crime reports have declined, contributing to our reputation as one of Australia’s safest cities,” A/DCPO Gough said.
Crime report types which saw the greatest decline in 2014 compared with 2013 included Sexual Assault (down 34.7 per cent), Assault (down 11.4 per cent), Property Damage (down 16.9 per cent) and Theft (down 5.6 per cent). Reports of Burglary saw an increase of 6.6 per cent and reports of Motor Vehicle Theft increased by 9.6 per cent.
“These statistics all feed into our intelligence-led policing model and allow us to allocate resources and respond to shifting priorities. A key focus for ACT Policing is meeting the targets set out in the Property Crime Reduction Strategy; which we remain on-track to do so by the end of the year,” A/DCPO Gough said.
The joint ACT Policing and ACT Government 2012-15 Property Crime Reduction Strategy has been in place since May 2012 and focuses on crime prevention within the community and diversion of recidivist and young offenders. Since the 2010 benchmark, reports of Burglary and Motor Vehicle Theft have fallen by about 50 per cent.
“I’d like to acknowledge the role the community has played in decreasing crime reports, as people proactively secure their homes and property to prevent crime and actively report suspicious behaviour to Crime Stoppers and police,” A/DCPO Gough said.
The latest quarterly crime statistics are available on the ACT Policing website; police.act.gov.au
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