Page 1924 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 14 May 2013
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This crime prevention program is specifically designed to prevent number plate theft, as this can often be the precursor to motor vehicle theft and other property and traffic related offences. During a four-hour fitting program in Gungahlin Marketplace, police secured the registration plates of 284 vehicles with the special one-way screws. This crime prevention initiative will continue to assist the community throughout 2013.
I would now like to turn to another crime type which is of notice from the statistical profile, the issue of bicycle theft. An increase is reported in the quarter relating to bicycle theft. The number of bicycle thefts increased by 41 per cent to 164 offences in March 2013 compared to 116 offences in the December 2012 quarter. A 12 per cent increase was recorded for bicycle theft in the 12 months to March 2013, 470 offences, when compared to the 12 months to March 2012, with only 420 offences. That is an increase of 50 offences.
Bicycle theft, as with other high property crime, can be susceptible to fluctuations. There appears to be a seasonal peak in bicycle theft, with five of the last six March quarters showing a clear spike in this crime type. This is possibly linked with the recommencement of university and senior schools. When examining a five-year trend in bicycle theft, there is only a small increase, two per cent, evident in the 12 months to March 2013, 470 offences, compared to the last 12 months to March 2009, with 460 offences. Nevertheless, this is a crime type of concern, and with the increasing use of bicycles by many in our community this is a timely reminder to ensure that people secure their bicycles when parked.
The Justice and Community Safety Directorate will work with ACT Policing to investigate strategies, including additional awareness and prevention campaigns, to address the rise in this crime type.
I will now turn to some issues around personal crime. The decrease in assaults, down 12 per cent, and public order offences, down 19 per cent, in the past 12 months can be seen in part as a result of liquor legislation reforms by this government which encourage safe and more responsible drinking practices.
ACT Policing continues its commitment to work with partner agencies in the prevention of alcohol-related violence in public places. Over the summer months of the March 2013 quarter, ACT Policing have undertaken a range of targeted initiatives as part of the work of the alcohol crime targeting team, a team of additional police officers funded as a result of the liquor licence fees put in place as part of liquor licence reform.
The activities undertaken by ACT Policing include the launch of a new social media campaign called “Don’t take your chances” to deter young people from underage drinking as part of its Skyfire fireworks partnership efforts. There was a partnership with Red Frogs, a not-for-profit-organisation, at Skyfire to strengthen the message that “It’s OK to say no to alcohol”. As a result, only a small number of teenagers were taken into custody for alcohol-related offences, a decrease of 75 per cent compared to the previous year, and there were no reported incidents of alcohol-related antisocial behaviour.
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