New statistics reveal a massive drop in crime committed in Brighton

Influencer Bec Judd claimed she felt “unsafe” in her affluent suburb — but new figures have revealed a different story.

Crime has dropped in Melbourne’s affluent bayside local government area by more than 12 per cent to the year ending March 31.

In Brighton specifically, the number of crimes year-to-year dropped by 829.

There were six aggravated burglaries in the year to March 31, compared to none the year prior and five in 2020.

The latest figure matched the number of aggravated burglaries in the suburb in 2017.

In East Brighton, there was one aggravated burglary in the year to March 31, compared to three the year prior.

The number of incidents in the bayside area decreased from 3827 to 3346 during this time.

It comes after footy WAG and influencer Bec Judd made claims she felt “unsafe” living in Brighton.

New Crime Statistics Agency data released today revealed crime has dropped in Victoria by close to 12 per cent in the past year, driven by the relaxation of CHO directives.

The rate of offences declined 11.9 per cent while the number of offences dropped 11.5 per cent in the year to March 31.

The huge drop across both categories can be attributed to a reduction in the CHO directives compared to the year prior.

A man is detained by members of Victoria Police on Marine Parade in Brighton. Picture: Getty Images

Youth offending, residential burglaries, theft, robberies and drug offences have all plummeted as COVID-19 kept people indoors.

The release of Crime Statistics Agency data for the year ending March, 2022, reveals a drop of 11.5 per cent from the same 12-month period in 2021.

Overall there were 470,405 criminal offences recorded in Victoria.

Victoria Police said it was the lowest number of criminal offences recorded year-on-year since 2015.

Victoria Police noted the impact of the pandemic on the lower crime rate but said it was “incredibly positive” that serious offending was in steady decline.

Home invasions, otherwise known as “residential aggravated burglaries’’ and assaults are however on the rise.

Crime Statistics Agency Chief Statistician Fiona Dowsley said changes to Covid-19 responses had driven the reduction in crime.

“(This has) resulted in fewer breaches of CHO direction offences, driving key crime measures down in the last 12 months,” she said.

“Decreases in acquisitive crime such as thefts and deception have also contributed to decreases in key crime measures, following trends seen throughout the pandemic period.”

The agency said there had been no offence that showed a significant upward trend in the past two years.

Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent said it was “incredibly pleasing” to see a reduction in crime.

Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent has praised the “reduction in serious crime”. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Geraghty.

“It is incredibly pleasing to see crime continue to reduce not only year-on-year, but from the levels we saw pre-pandemic as well,” Mr Nugent said.

“Importantly, we are seeing a reduction in the number of victims in our community and the number of people offending, particularly in relation to youth – this shows our collaboration with external partners to implement early intervention initiatives is making an impact and diverting young people away from crime.

“It is positive to see a reduction in serious crimes that have long lasting impacts such as home burglaries and robberies – we know the impact these crimes have on how safe people feel in their own homes and neighbourhoods and we will continue to do everything we can to disrupt this offending.”