By BRIDGET SCOTT
A NEW operation run by police has prompted a huge drop in the rates of auto crime.
Operation Stance, which began on 22 February, has already contributed to 49 per cent reduction in theft of car and a 52 per cent reduction in theft from cars.
Run by the Criminal Investigation Unit (CIU) at Narre Warren, the operation identifies hot spots in the municipality where there are high rates of certain crimes.
Casey detectives have run a number of plain clothes operations and the Operation Response Units support these by deploying marked units to crime hotspots.
The operation will continue until the end of June, with at least 50 additional high visibility police officers taking part.
Detective Senior Sergeant John Bergin said police have made a number of arrests.
“We have checked around 200 plus people and intercepted around 100 cars,” he said.
“There has already been a big reduction in theft from cars.”
Sen Sgt Bergin said police at Frankston ran a similar initiative which was also very successful.
He said police also wanted to make people aware of how much inconvenience car theft causes its victims.
As well as losing valuables, including treasured photos, he said crime victims had to deal with making insurance claims.
Cranbourne Senior Sergeant Daniel Baynes also said the operation was a great success.
“It has already had a very good impact,” he said.
He said the community must support Operation Stance by partnering with police in the fight to curb these crimes.
Statistics from Victoria Police revealed that between 2013 and 2014 there were 48,000 reports of theft from car in Victoria, with no signs of forced entry in 41,000 of these cases.
