🕵 Is Victoria as Safe as It Seems?

Over the past decade, Victoria has seen major shifts in: - 👥 Social behaviour
- 👮Policing
- 🛡️ Public safety

But the question remains:
Are we truly getting safer or just feeling safer?

Using publicly available data from the CSA, this story reveals the truth behind the numbers.

We’ll explore:

• Overall crime trends

• Where crimes are happening

• What types of offences dominate

• Whether crimes are being solved

Let’s begin by examining the big picture…

Victoria’s Crime Trend Over the Past Decade

What the Numbers Are Really Telling Us

The data reveals a story of rising crime in Victoria over the past decade.

Crime peaked in 2024 with over 605,000 reported offences.

A noticeable drop in 2021 reflects the COVID-19 lockdown period,

Reduced public activity and restricted movement lowered offence rates.But post-lockdown, the numbers have surged again, the rise isn’t just temporary.

So the real question is…

What types of crime are driving this increase?

What Types of Crime Are Most Common?

🚨 The top five offences driving Victoria’s crime numbers are property-related.

• 🚗 Motor vehicle theft has skyrocketed in 2024, hitting over 75,000 cases.
• 🛍Theft and deception-related crimes have steadily grown post-lockdown.
• 🔨 Criminal damage remains consistently high.
• 💳 fraud and scams show resilience.

The surge we’re seeing isn’t about feeling unsafe…
It’s about material losses and opportunistic offences across communities.

So now we ask:
🗺️ Where are these crimes happening the most in Victoria?

Are Crimes Actually Getting Solved?

Conclusion

• 📈 Crime surged in 2024 over 605,000 offences reported, the highest in a decade.
• 🧨 The biggest contributors to this rise are theft and criminal damage.
• 🗺️ Highest offence counts in: Melbourne, Casey, and Greater Geelong.
• 🕵️️ More crimes went unsolved than solved over 274,000 cases unresolved.
• 🚨 Crime is rising, but resolution rates aren’t keeping up.

Refrences

Crime Statistics Agency Victoria. (2025). Recorded offences by type, location, investigation status, and drug involvement: Year ending December 2024 [Data tables]. https://www.crimestatistics.vic.gov.au/crime-statistics/latest-crime-data

Crime Statistics Agency Victoria. (2025). Recorded offences by local government area (LGA): Year ending December 2024 [Data tables]. https://www.crimestatistics.vic.gov.au/crime-statistics/latest-crime-data