Crime in Hume is at an eight-year low, driven by a decrease in burglaries and thefts across the municipality.
Latest Crime Statistics Agency data reveals a 14.5 per cent drop in the number of offences recorded in Hume between December, 2016, and December last year.
At December, 2016, the municipality recorded 23,650 offences for the year, falling to 20,214 last year.
The drop is the first time since December, 2009, that Hume’s offence numbers haven’t increased from the previous 12 months.
Inspector Anthony Brown said police had been working hard to identify crime trends and address them as early as possible.
“Over the last 12 months, we have been able to put together a divisional taskforce that has enabled us to proactively target areas of concern,” he said.
According to the crime data, Hume recorded a 16 per cent drop in thefts, driven by a fall in thefts of and from motor vehicles. Inspector Brown said while the data was good news, he did not want people to become complacent.
“We don’t want people to leave valuables in their cars,” he said.
“Tradesmen’s vehicles we would prefer were parked in a locked area or tools removed.”
Hume also recorded a drop in burglaries, falling from 2294 at December, 2016, to 2100 at December, 2017.
Inspector Brown said police were continuing to focus on burglaries.
In November, police arrested seven people in relation to 30 aggravated burglaries across the north-western suburbs, including Broadmeadows, Roxburgh Park and Craigieburn.
In Whittlesea, crime fell 6.5 per cent between December, 2016, and December, 2017. The municipality recorded a significant drop in burglaries – 28 per cent to 1357 offences.
Theft of motor vehicles dropped 40 per cent to 706 offences, while theft from motor vehicles fell 25 per cent.
