by Emma Ballingall
Simply locking your car may no longer be enough to prevent theft, Baw Baw police have warned amidst soaring car theft cases.
With 198 car thefts recorded in the past 12 months, Baw Baw police services area inspector Peter Fusinato said new technology had emerged which enabled thieves to open and start certain car models without a key.
He urged owners of Toyota Landcruisers and Holden Commodores, in particular, to park in locked garages or behind gates instead of on residential streets.
"They seem to be the makes that are regularly stolen where the owners still have their key," insp Fusinato said.
"Simply locking your car may not prevent it being stolen," he said. "Parking a car in the street locked doesn't mean it's always safe."
The warning came as latest crime statistics showed a 22.9 per cent increase in crime in Baw Baw.
The Crime Statistics Agency reported 5182 offences were recorded in the 12 months to September in the region, representing a significant rise from 4215 offences in 2023.
"In comparison to Latrobe and Bass Coast, we're up considerably," insp Fusinato said.
He said crimes against the person - such as assault - was "through the roof" two years ago. But, it was pleasing to see "we've subdued and reduced that considerably."
"A lot of it is property crime," he said of the increase.
Statistics based on per 100,000 population indicated Baw Baw's crime was up on the past three years but below numbers recorded in 2019 and 2020.
Warragul continued to be the "hot spot" of local crime, with 2302 crimes recorded. Drouin followed on 1394, followed by a significant drop to Trafalgar (355), Longwarry (227) and Yarragon (180).
Crime was most likely to occur at a house with 2200 offences, followed by in the street or footpath with 636. Driveways (225), retail (147) and service station (127) were also ranked amongst common locations for local crime.
Breach of family violence orders was the most common crime with 947 offences recorded.
Stealing from a vehicle was ranked second with 510 offences, followed by criminal damage (417), theft (334) and family violence common assault (235).
Theft and property damage figures in Baw Baw were the highest seen in 10 years, whilst 121 burglaries was the highest seen since 2016.
The 198 car thefts recorded in the region over the past 12 months to September was a 78.3 per cent increase on the 111 the previous year. Of these, 94 were stolen from Warragul and 41 from Drouin.
Insp Fusinato said the property crimes were perceived as relatively safe as opposed to crimes against the person. However, he said aggravated burglaries were causing significant emotional trauma for victims.
Whilst committed by a small number of perpetrators, he said "it is a concerning trend."
He said cars stolen from metropolitan regions were turning up in Baw Baw and "ours turn up in places you'd never imagine previously" - indicating both locals and those outside the region were responsible.
Insp Fusinato said police were shocked residents still refrained from locking property and vehicles to limit their chances of being targeted by opportunistic thieves.
Insp Fusinato said CCTV footage, more frequently being used by residents, highlighted the importance of locking up - including back doors.
He said it was amazing how many times a thief was captured leaving residential properties untouched if both front and back doors were locked.
Whilst a majority of offenders will flee when confronted, he said there was a minor trend towards people being armed when committing aggravated burglaries in metropolitan regions.
In such a scenario, he urged locals to avoid physical confrontations and immediately call 000.
"We can pretty much guarantee the same sort of trend will sweep into regional areas at some stage," insp Fusinato said.
A 31.4 per cent rise in family violence incidents, impacting 1005 females and 326 males in our region, worried police.
Insp Fusinato said it was positive people were coming forward to report crimes as it showed trust in police. However, even considering population increases, he admitted "that's a huge increase."
As cost of living pressures and thefts rise, Insp Fusinato believed the two were linked.
He said more itinerant people were being seen around the Warragul central business district and increased foot patrols would be undertaken to speak to those people, help where possible and ensure community members felt safe.
Of the offences recorded in the past 12 months in Baw Baw, 46.8 per cent resulted in arrest or summons. In total, 31.8 per cent were unsolved.
Offenders were most commonly aged 10 to 17 years, indicating a continued trend of youth crime.
Of the 1988 offenders, 438 were aged 10 to 17 years, 387 were 45 years plus and 270 were 30 to 34 years. Men greatly outnumbered women 1514 to 474.
Compared to other Gippsland municipalities, Baw Baw recorded the highest rise in crime. Bass Coast had a 21.4 per cent increase, Wellington 13.7 per cent, East Gippsland and South Gippsland 10.1 per cent, and Latrobe 6.1 per cent. Cardinia Shire increased 19.2 per cent.