Graffiti crackdown

POLICE are clamping down on vandals tagging their way through the City of Casey.
The crackdown has led to the arrest of a 19-year-old Berwick man at his house on 4 June. He was charged with two counts of theft and five counts of criminal damage, having caused over $34,000 worth of graffiti damage.
He will appear before Dandenong Magistrates Court on 21 August this year.
Casey Inspector Andrew Miles said police had a zero tolerance approach to graffiti damage. Members of the Casey Response Unit continued to crack down on the crime in the City of Casey with the cooperation of the local council.
“The ongoing partnership between the City of Casey and Victoria Police is critical to our ongoing efforts to reduce property damage caused by graffiti,” Insp Miles said.
“Our success to date wouldn’t have been achieved without this partnership and the ongoing commitment that the City of Casey has made to the removal of graffiti.”
Casey’s Tactical Intelligence Operative, Leading Senior Constable Christopher Blazevic, said police received intelligence from the council which was often called to clean-up graffiti sites. “Offenders leave tags, which are photographed and handed to us by the council. It’s then our job to identify the tag owners and then gather enough evidence to charge them,” Sen Con Blazevic said.
He said there may be misconceptions among young people that graffiti is an anonymous crime, and that they can vandalize property without getting caught. “But in the two years we’ve been targeting graffiti crime we’ve nabbed many offenders and we will continue to do so until people get the message,” Sen Con Blazevic said.
City of Casey manager of community safety Caroline Bell said the management of graffiti vandalism was very successful in Casey, in part due to the partnerships council has with police, contractors and residents.
She said council also has an extensive graffiti management program, comprising the components of eradication, education, enforcement and engagement. “The success of this program is in part due to the strong relationship that the City of Casey has with the Victoria Police,” she said.