Youth crime up as vehicle thefts soar by 23 per cent, Victorian crime stats reveal

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Motor vehicle thefts in Victoria have surged by almost 23 per cent, with a total of 21,463 offences recorded over 12 months to the end of March 2024. Police intelligence indicates that the three most common places cars are stolen from are residential areas, non-residential streets or carparks, and during an aggravated burglary. Aggravated burglaries where cars were either stolen or broken into are at their highest levels since records of the linked offences began in 2018. Car thefts by youths aged between 14 and 17 jumped by 52.7 per cent in 2023. Thefts from cars saw the greatest increase in raw numbers in the 12 months to March, with a significant proportion of thefts targeting unlocked cars. Victoria Police continues to invest significant resources towards curbing these offenders.

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