Townsville tops Queensland for decade-long offence rise

Townsville has recorded the biggest crime surge in Queensland over the past decade, with overall offending rates up a staggering 55 per cent. SEE THE STATS BREAKDOWN.

Townsville has recorded the biggest crime surge in Queensland over the past decade, with overall offending rates up a staggering 55 per cent.

New data from the Queensland Government Statistician’s Office has laid bare the extent of the city’s crime crisis, revealing no region in the state has experienced a greater long-term blowout in crime than North Queensland’s unofficial capital.

Back in 2014-15, Townsville’s total offence rate sat at 12,249 per 100,000 people.

Fast forward to 2023-24, and it has soared to 19,050, a 55.5 per cent jump, placing Townsville at the very top of the statewide list.

Offences against the person, including assaults and violent attacks, have exploded by nearly 242 per cent over the decade.

In the past year alone, police recorded 8,663 incidents, the highest count of any Queensland region.

Townsville’s ramping domestic violence crisis was also laid bare, with breaches of protection orders skyrocketing by 278 per cent over the past ten years.

In 2023-24 alone, police responded to 6,315 breaches, the equivalent of more than 17 a day.

Sexual offences are also on the rise. The number of recorded sexual assaults jumped by 41 per cent in the past year, with 940 incidents reported, the second highest in the state behind only the Gold Coast.

Rape and attempted rape offences climbed as well, rising 24 per cent to 299 cases.

Car theft remains a key concern. While the rate of stolen vehicles fell slightly in the last financial year — down 0.05 per cent to 1,764 incidents — the long-term trend paints a bleaker picture.

Over the last ten years, the rate of unlawful use of motor vehicles in Townsville has surged by 192 per cent, fuelled in large part by the actions of repeat juvenile offenders.

Children aged 10-17 make up just 10.5 per cent of Queensland’s population, yet in 2023-24, they accounted for 17.5 per cent of all offenders police took action against.

While the total number of child offenders fell by 5.2 per cent from the previous year, this was driven by a drop in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth offenders, who recorded their largest annual decrease since data collection began.

The number of Indigenous boys fell by 11.9 per cent and Indigenous girls by 8.7 per cent.

In contrast, the number of non-Indigenous female offenders rose sharply, increasing by 10 per cent to reach a time-series high of 8,161 girls dealt with by police.

Boys still make up the majority of child offenders, but the gender gap is narrowing.

In 2023-24, there were 2.6 male offenders for every female, the smallest gap in the report’s history.

Minister for Police and Emergency Services Dan Purdie said the shocking crime statistics are exactly why the LNP are expanding Adult Crime, Adult Time laws in a bid to make the state safer.

“It will take time to turn the tide on a youth crime crisis a decade in the making under Labor, but with Adult Crime, Adult Time, more police, early intervention and rehabilitation, we can start to make the change Queensland needs,” he said.

“There is a big challenge ahead to fix Labor’s youth crime crisis, but the early police data suggests our stronger laws are beginning to deter youth crime.”

Originally published as Townsville tops Queensland for decade-long offence rise