By Harrison Borthwick
CRIME across the Kingston local government area has dropped by over 12 per cent in the year ending June 2026, according to newly released figures from the Crime Statistics Agency.
There were 9129 criminal offences recorded in the Kingston LGA in the year ending June 2026, down from 10,417 offences in the previous year; a drop of 12.4 per cent.
Despite the drop, crime has still risen in the Kingston LGA by over 25 per cent since 2022.
Cheltenham was the suburb most affected by crime, with 1796 offences. Moorabbin had 1175 offences, up from 1118 in the previous 12 months, and Clayton South had 854 offences, down from 1056 offences.
The data shows the largest offence recorded was “steal from a motor vehicle”, which decreased from 1782 in the 12 months to 1466 incidents recorded.
The next most common offence was “other theft” which dropped from 1105 offences in the previous 12 months to 970 in the 12 months up to June 2026.
The third most common offence was “steal from a retail store”, which dropped from 2066 offences in the previous 12 months compared to 1,673 incidents in the 12 months to June 2026.
Data also showed of the 9129 offences recorded, 54.2 per cent were still unsolved.
In the neighbouring Frankston LGA, total offences went down 10.8 per cent from 13,725 to 12,241 incidents. The offence “steal from a motor vehicle” was the most common offence with 1673 offences recorded for the 12 months until June 2026.
Statewide, criminal offences have fallen slightly with 468,070 criminal offences recorded in Victoria in the twelve months to June 2026 – a decrease of 2.9 per cent compared to the same period last year.
A statement from Victoria Police said: “While it is pleasing to see overall crime figures stabilising, and many categories seeing reductions, general levels remain elevated, reinforcing the need for Victoria Police to maintain a strong focus on prevention and enforcement activities.
“Community safety is maximised when our people are visible, proactive and focused on frontline policing. By continuing to modernise the way we deploy our workforce, we are increasing our capacity to prevent crime, target emerging issues and provide a stronger policing presence where it matters most.
“A four per cent reduction in serious and violent crime is an encouraging result, but our work is far from over. We remain firmly committed to reducing harm across the community and will continue striving not only to meet our targets, but to exceed them.
“Victoria Police will continue to focus on prevention where we can, enforcement where we must, and maintaining the visible, proactive policing presence that communities in this state rightly expect and deserve.”
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 30 September 2026