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Tuesday 2 April 2024
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Frankston crime rate through the roof last year Brodie Cowburn brodie@baysidenews.com.au
Samira, a Labrador puppy who began attending The Mornington Centre with her owner, Karen Edwards, at only a few months old fell into the role of a wellbeing dog. Through her frequent visits and interactions at The Mornington Centre, Samira also quickly showed that she encompassed the qualities of a guide dog and was selected to become an official breeder. She has recently welcomed a litter of three puppies destined for a role as future guide dogs, enriching the lives of the blind and low vision community. The Mornington Centre organised a facility-wide competition to guess the size, colour, and sex of the puppies. The winner, Charlie Vo (pictured with Samira), a physiotherapist at The Mornington Centre, earned the privilege of naming the puppies Hiro, Hendrix & Huxley. Pictures: Supplied
CRIME in Frankston sky-rocketed well beyond the statewide average in 2023. There were nearly 15,000 offences recorded in the Frankston local government area in 2023, a 17.4 increase on the 2022 figure. The figures were released last month by the Crime Statistics Agency. According to the CSA, crime increased statewide in 2023 by 8.4 per cent. Frankston’s offence rate per 100,000 people last year was its worst since 2019. In the Frankston LGA, the suburb of Frankston was by-far the worst affected by crime in 2023. More than 7500 offenses were recorded in Frankston, around three times more than the second-ranked Seaford. Carrum Downs, Langwarrin, and Frankston North rounded out the list of local suburbs most-affected by crime. Family violence order breaches were the most common recorded offence in Frankston - more than 2000 breaches were recorded in 2023. More than 1000 thefts from motor vehicles and criminal damages were also recorded. CSA chief statistician Fiona Dowsley said that increases in “high volume property and deception offences categories, particularly in thefts from motor vehicles and retail stores” is to blame for the statewide crime increase. “An increase in these acquisitive offence types reflects in part a return to pre-pandemic trends, but also is in line
with current cost of living pressures,” she said. Victoria Police deputy commissioner of regional operations Neil Paterson said that the statewide increase represented a return to pre-COVID crime levels. “Crime in Victoria has gradually increased over the past few years as Victorian life has returned to normality post pandemic,” he said. “When population is considered, Victoria pleasingly still has its third lowest crime rate at any point over the past decade – ahead of only 2022 and the COVID-marred 2021. While this is positive, that doesn’t mean there aren’t areas of concern. “Child offending remains a real challenge for police and significant driver of serious and violent crime in Victoria. Victoria Police continue to hold these people accountable, with youth gang members targeted as part of Operation Alliance and young burglars and car thieves continually arrested and put before the courts under Operation Trinity. These operations have led to over 5000 combined arrests over the past year, with Operation Trinity alone leading to the arrest of almost four burglars and car thieves every day – the vast majority children. “While police will continue to patrol known hotspots every evening until dawn as part of Trinity, we are also calling on the community to play their part and lock their properties and cars.” To view the full crime statistics visit crimestatistics.vic.gov.au/crime-statistics/latest-crime-data-by-area