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Wangaratta Chronicle 220324

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www.wangarattachronicle.com.au

Phone (03) 5723 0100 P

Weekend Edition

FRIDAY, March 22, 2024

$1.80 INC. GST

Full results: 8 page lift-out inside e EGGED ON IN TIME FOR EASTER Wangaratta green thumb Mario Caligiuri loves his garden, and it has certainly delivered the goods with this eggplant weighing near 1kg. STORY PAGE 4 PHOTO: Shane Douthie

Man charged over alleged jewellery store robbery Page 3

Grand finale to WDCA season Sport

CRIME RATE RISE Police see p positives in decade high, g ,p pointing g to ggreater reporting, p g, not criminal spike p

AN increase of around 15 per cent in local criminal incidents has been seen as a positive sign by local police, with more people reporting offences. In data released yesterday by the Crime Statistics Agency for the 2023 calendar year to December, the Wangaratta local government area (LGA) recorded its highest rate of crime in

BY BAILEY ZIMMERMANN bzimmermann@ nemedia.com.au

more than 10 years. There were some 1938 criminal offences in total, an increase of 245 offences from 2022 figures and at a rate of 6446 incidents per 100,000 people, compared to the state average of 5672.

Despite the increased figures, Wangaratta recorded crime at the fourth highest rate in the Eastern region and 25th highest for the whole state. Acting Inspector for the Wangaratta Police Service Area, Nathan Ractliffe, said while rates were at the highest in more than a decade, it was a positive side-effect of the increase of reported of-

fences and victim reports by the public, which was also at a decade high. “A lot of it I put down to people being more encouraged these days to report crimes, whether it’s public order, criminal damage or anti-social behaviour,” he said. “We’re encouraged by the fact we’ve got more people ringing police who report personal crimes.

WANGARATTA BEARINGS AND INDUSTRIAL SUPPLIES

“Our police assistance line is another avenue for people to report crime and that reflects in our reporting of statistics. “It’s not because there’s been a significant increase in crime, it’s because there’s more avenues for people to report crime, which then shows that increase.” A total of 613 theft related offences (from 496 in 2022)

including theft from a motor vehicle and other thefts were some of the largest contributors to the rise in offences, with criminal damage and breaches of family violence orders being the highest form of offending. Acting Inspector Ractliffe said police would like to see more vigilance taken in terms of securing property. ■ Continued page 2

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