Warning: Car theft on the rise across Toowoomba

A grim report has revealed most Queenslanders no longer feel safe in their homes, as the number of car thefts occurring across the Toowoomba region rises.

The number of car thefts occurring across the Toowoomba region is rising following a lull in offences in mid-2023.

The new statistics follow a damming survey which found Queenslanders no longer feel safe in their homes, with 78 per cent of residents falling victim to property crime, or know someone who had been.

Queensland Police Service crime statistics show there was a decline in unlawful use offences in June (62 car thefts), July (67), and August (57), however by September the number of reports rose to 71 car thefts, and 101 in October.

The lull was attributed to targeted police operations, community awareness, and youth justice/social work initiatives, which came to fruition following the launch of the Toowoomba Chronicle’s ‘Enough is Enough’ youth crime campaign.

Former Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk at the Toowoomba Police station, Friday, February 24, 2023. Picture: Kevin Farmer

As a result of the statewide campaign, the government agreed to biannually publish youth crime data against several expert-backed key performance indicators to track the complex and growing issue of youth crime.

More than 10,000 crimes committed in Toowoomba over the past five years, were carried out by teenagers – 2385 of which occurred in 2022 alone.

Car theft crimes peaked across the Darling Downs policing district in January and April, as police officers responded to 120 alleged car thefts each month.

Statistics for November and December are yet to be compiled and released, however live QPS data shows Darling Downs officers responded to at least 58 stolen car reports in November, and 66 reports in December.

Toowoomba youth crime co-responder team leader Brooke Sanders (left) speaks with Youth Justice Minister Di Farmer and Acting Assistant Commissioner George Marchesini about the rollout of the youth crime co-responder program, Saturday, May 20, 2023. Picture: Kevin Farmer

The Courier-Mail surveyed almost 7000 Queenslanders, and found 77 per cent believed their suburb was affected by youth crime in 2023, up from 46 per cent in 2020.

The survey also found 94 per cent of readers advocated for harsher penalties for juveniles, and 20 per cent favoured raising the age of criminal responsibility.