POLICE commanders have rejected claims rising crime rates are due to cuts to the number of frontline officers assigned to suburban stations, despite a report showing there are now 20 per cent less “frontline” police on duty at Kingston police stations than in 2010.
Latest figures released by Victoria Police reveal the number of crimes committed across the state rose 5 per cent rise over the past year, while Kingston’s crime rate increased 1.5 per cent.
Drug offences surged more than 30 per cent in Kingston over the past 12 months, while residential burglaries jumped 17.4 per cent.
However, the official crime statistics for the year to 31 March show significant reductions in the rate of offending in most other categories of crime, including a 22.9 per cent fall in the number of robberies detected, an 8.5 per cent drop in assaults and 17 per cent decrease in vehicle theft.
Kingston police commander Inspector Bruce Wemyss said that although the overall rate of crime had increased, police were making significant inroads into curbing a number of high-priority criminal activities and undesirable behaviour.
“In reviewing the latest release of crime statistics for the City of Kingston, although overall crime has increased marginally, we have achieved significant reductions in robberies, assaults and thefts of motor cars on the same time last year,” Inspector Wemyss said.
“Unfortunately, we have seen an increase in the number of residential burglaries. In response, we have allocated specific teams of investigators to target this offending.
“This has been supported by plain clothes teams from our tasking unit. Live tasking and monitoring activities of recidivist offenders also form part of our response plan.”
He said the rise in the number of drug offences detected had come as “no surprise” to police commanders and was “a sign that our intelligence processes and detection techniques work”.
Police continue to be frustrated by the “unnecessarily” high rates of the thefts from motor vehicles, which increased 8 per cent over the year.
Motorists failing to lock their vehicles and remove valuables was identified as the key to rising theft rates, Inspector Wemyss said. He said most instances of items being stolen from vehicles occurred at night from unlocked cars in driveways and local streets.
“Many offences are opportunistic where property is clearly visible. Typical items stolen include laptops, iPads and mobile phones. I implore everyone to ensure that their vehicles and valuables are locked up.”
Police commanders rejected claims the rise in crime was due to cuts to the number of frontline officers assigned to suburban police stations, despite figures revealing there are now 20 per cent less “frontline” police on duty at Kingston police stations than in 2010.
Figures released last week by the state Opposition show Kingston was one of more than 50 police service areas across Victoria to suffer significant staffing cuts.
Police numbers at thirty of those areas were down 10 per cent, while Kingston was among 20 police service areas suffering cuts of more than 20 per cent, opposition police and emergency services spokesman Wade Noonan said.
Mr Noonan said as many as 30 uniformed officers had been lost from some police service areas, with stations having trouble filling shifts and keeping up uniform patrols.
He said in many cases, there was a direct correlation between the loss of local police and an increase in crime rates.
The Coalition government had “reduced the number of frontline police at local stations at the same time as he has slashed Victoria Police funding by $113 million and cut 500 staff”, Mr Noonan said.
However police spokesman Sergeant Kris Hamilton said that there were now significantly more police serving Kingston and the Victorian community than ever before.
“Looking at numbers within police stations alone presents a skewed picture of how many police are working in an area, because many of our police are not physically attached to the stations,” Sergeant Hamilton said.
“They are working in specialist squads, tackling family violence, organised crime and offending on our roads.
“These police are not always based at local police stations, but are still working in local communities, helping to keep Victorians safe.”
Police Minister Kim Wells said there were now more than 1500 extra frontline police in Victoria than in 2010, with a further 200 to be recruited by November this year.
“There are also more than 750 Protective Services Officers protecting commuters at rail stations, which is 750 more than there was under Labor. An additional 190 are still to come,” Mr Wells said.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Ken Lay last week confirmed more police would be allocated to specialised units in the future, meaning there may be less police “physically attached” to specific police stations.
Outlining details of a “blue paper” on the future of Victoria Police, Mr Lay said police resources would be deployed at a divisional level for appropriate crime fighting tasks.
Mr Lay also hit out at political interference in police matters.
“As an organisation, we have been significantly shaped by political parties who propose changes and initiatives at election time,” the Chief Commissioner said. “Sometimes these decisions are not always based on research and the best evidence available.
“But now with the release of the full Blue Paper, we have a chance to take some control back- to inform the debate and to set the direction for a modernised Victoria Police.”
Mr Lay said police needed to build “greater flexibility into the way we deploy our resources”.
“That is why we are now allocating police numbers at larger geographic divisional level so that police commanders have the freedom to move police officers from town to town as and when needed. In addition, we also need more dedicated, specialist taskforces that can help police tackle the greatest drivers of harm.
Acting Senior Sergeant Ron Klajnblat of Chelsea police agreed greater flexibility in police allocations within service areas was the most efficient means of managing police resources.
“When I first started in the police force, we be allocated to a specific station, but now rostering is done at a divisional level, in our case from our headquarters at Moorabbin,” he said.
“Officers can then be allocated where they are needed, which not only provides the best coverage, but also provides flexibility for the troops themselves, which they appreciate.
“If there’s a specific incident or operation, we’re able to place police officers where they need to be, and this is clearly the best approach for all concerned.”
