There were 578,762 criminal offences recorded in Victoria in the twelve months to September 2024 – an increase of 68,536 offences or 13.4%.
The crime rate when population growth is considered is 8,305.8 offences per 100,000 people – a 10.9% increase from the year before. This remains lower than the highs of 2016 where the rate was 8,798 per 100,000 people.
With crime increasing, Victoria Police arrested 26,640 people a total of 70,863 times – the most arrests since 2005. This equates to 194 arrests per day. These individuals were charged with a total of 268,142 offences.
For comparison, Victoria Police made 64,975 arrests last year and 56,330 arrests a decade ago (12 months to September 2015).
The top five offences to record the greatest year-on-year increase were:
• Theft from motor vehicle (68,042 offences, +13,924) reached record highs and remains the most common criminal offence. More than a third of theft from motor vehicle offences relate to number plates being stolen (24,257 offences). Power tools were the second most targeted item. 83% of all theft from motor vehicle offences showed no sign of forced entry.
• Theft from a retail store (35,951 offences, + 9,635) recorded the largest percentage increase of the top five crimes (+36.6%), with inflation, cost-of-living pressures and high interest rates driving record levels of grocery and alcohol thefts. Meat, fresh produce, cosmetics, and vitamins are among the items most frequently stolen. Police are running a series of retail theft operations across the state, surrounding clothing stores in South Yarra, supermarkets in Port Melbourne, large department stores in Melbourne’s CBD, hardware stores in Shepparton and even street markets selling stolen meat in St Albans. It is anticipated this will remain an issue as cost-of-living pressures bite and first-time offenders turn to stealing.
• Theft (other) offences increased (53,894 offences, +8,842), led by another crime tied to cost-of-living pressures – petrol theft (+23.7%, +973 to 5,075).
• Motor vehicle theft (25,773 offences, +6,408) reached its highest levels since 2003. Police intelligence reveals around 40% of all car thieves are child or youth offenders.
• Family violence order breaches (59,063, +6,184) increased as there were over 100,000 family violence incidents for the first time in Victorian history. Family violence trends will be covered in greater detail later in this release.
While property related crime is driving the top four fastest growing crimes, the offence rate per 100,000 people for property crime is presently 4,769 and remains lower that the 2008 Global Financial Crisis (rate 5,554) and 2016 peak levels (rate 5,280).
Family violence
• The number of family violence incidents surpassed 100,000 for the first time in history, with police responding to 102,082 incidents (+8,850 or 10.4%).
• Contributing factors include difficult economic times, and a rise in technology enabled stalking and harassment – particularly in relation to former intimate partner relationships.
• Aggravated assault of a female increased by 92.2% year-on-year (2,500 offences, up from 1,301), with 81% of these incidents related to family violence.
• Family violence related offending accounts for 20.7% of all crime committed in Victoria.
• During this reporting period, Victoria Police arrested 8,543 family violence offenders a total of 15,446 times. This represents the most family violence perpetrators arrested since 2005.
• Police intelligence shows around a third of family violence offenders are repeat offenders.
• Repeat family violence offenders are most prevalent in regional areas, with family violence related assaults, harassment and rapes increasing at a higher rate regionally than in metropolitan Melbourne.
• Tragically, there were also 30 family violence related homicides over this reporting period – 12 of which were in regional Victoria.
• Some factors that influence family violence offending in regional Victoria include greater drug and alcohol use, higher levels of unemployment, and victims feeling fearful to speak up given the closeknit nature of these towns and the reputational status their abuser may hold within a small community.
• Unfortunately, police traditionally see a spike in family violence reports over the Christmas and New Year period.
• On Christmas Day alone last year, police responded to 372 family violence incidents – up from the yearly daily average of 279.
• The most common form of family violence recorded on Christmas Day involved perpetrators breaching orders – with 91 offences recorded, as well as assault – with 79 offences recorded.
• Police will be conducting proactive patrols and check on known offenders during this time to proactively identify any offending.
Child and Youth Crime
• Overall child (10 – 17) and youth (18 – 24) offenders were responsible for 50,516 combined incidents – an increase of 13.5% year-on-year.
• Crimes committed by children aged 10 – 17 rose to their highest levels since 2009 (23,810 incidents, +16.9% year-on-year).
• Those aged 14 – 17 were responsible for most child crime in Victoria (20,753 incidents, +20.7% year-on-year), with police intelligence also revealing this age range accounted for more than three quarters of new child offenders.
• Child offenders only account for around 10% of total offenders, however they are overrepresented in key crimes – with police intelligence indicating they account for a quarter of all aggravated burglary offenders and half of all robbery offenders.
• In the twelve months to September 2024, Victoria Police processed 7,310 child offenders a combined 23,810 times (+16.9% from 20,639).
• While the number of incidents involving child offenders increased, there was a reduction in the number of individual children committing crime, with a decrease of 120 child offenders from last year (-1.6% from 7,430 child offenders).
• This includes almost 3,200 arrests made during this time as part of Victoria Police’s two key operations targeting serious and violent child and youth offending – Operation Alliance (youth gangs) and Operation Trinity (home burglaries and car thefts).
• One in three child offenders are repeat offenders who are involved in two or more criminal incidents (2,576).
• These young people represent the core group of offenders causing the most damage who police are targeting as part of Alliance and Trinity. However, to put this into perspective, this small group represents well below 1% of the Victorian population aged under 18.
Burglaries and Car Theft
• Overall, there were 28,432 home burglaries across Victoria – 3,564 more than the year before. Of these, 3,915 offences were attempts (13.8% of all home burglaries are failed attempts).
• Despite this, the total number of Victorian homes being broken into remains well below levels from earlier in the past decade. For example, there were 36,632 homes broken into in 2016 – 8,200 more than current levels.
• However, aggravated residential burglaries reached historic highs, increasing by 1,340 offences (6,927, up from 5,587).
• The majority of aggravated burglaries occur across metropolitan areas, with police intelligence showing around a third were linked to instances where cars were stolen.
• Police intelligence shows child (10-17) and youth (18-24) offenders continue to account for almost half of all aggravated burglary offenders.
• That is why 70 additional police are out across Melbourne every single night specifically targeting burglars and car thieves as part of Operation Trinity.
• Operation Trinity arrested 673 people almost 1,550 times for breaking into homes and stealing cars in the twelve months to end of September 2024.
• Each year, burglaries and car thefts traditionally increase leading into summer and this year is no different, with both crimes trending upwards as the weather heats up.
• Commercial burglaries have also increased by 3,528 offences (16,246 up from 12,718). A concerning trend in this space involves child and youth offenders targeting service stations, supermarkets, and tobacconists for cigarettes to then on sell.
Quotes attributable to Deputy Commissioner Regional Operations Neil Paterson
“Our officers are determined to seek justice for all victims of crime and over the past year, Victoria Police made 70,863 arrests – almost 200 per day and the most since 2005.
“Rising crime has been driven by several factors, led by a surge in family violence.
“For the first time ever, Victoria reached the unwanted milestone of more than 100,000 family violence incidents – meaning police responded to a family violence incident every five minutes.
“Sadly, the festive and new year period is not a happy time in all homes, with family violence offences increasing sharply on Christmas Day last year.
“Over the coming weeks, police will be proactively checking on known offenders, while we also encourage people to look out for warning signs that their family and friends may be a victim of family violence.
“Other factors behind the overall increase in crime include a tough economic climate, and opportunistic offenders continuing to take advantage of unlocked cars and homes.
“Summer is peak season for burglars and car thieves who prey upon people leaving doors and windows open as the mercury rises.
“While we’ll continue to be out in force every night as part of Operation Trinity, we urge the community to take simple home security steps, such as checking all doors and windows are locked before heading to bed as well as ensuring their cars are locked.
“While child and youth crime has again increased, there are some positive signs with less first-time offenders aged between 10 and 17, as well as continual decreases in the number of youth offenders aged between 18 and 24 being processed.
“Heading into the new year, we’ll continue to target Victoria’s worst child and youth offenders as we did this year – every day, police arrested nine youth gang members, child burglars and underage car thieves as part of Operation Alliance and Operation Trinity.
“We want the community to safely enjoy the festive season, so they don’t become a statistic we’re talking about next year – look after your family, friends and other community members this festive season, whether you’re on the roads, at a licensed venue, or in the home.”
