Arson, assault surge at Corio

Alex de Vos
Crime reports to Corio Police have soared over the past year in contrast to a decrease at the Geelong station.
New Victoria Police figures show crime reports at Corio have increased 20 per cent, while Geelong’s fell 7.3 per cent.
Chief Inspector Wayne Carson said arson and assault led the surge in reported crime at Corio.
He attributed the rise for assaults to increased reporting of family violence.
Insp Carson said police were working hard to reduce the figures.
“We have a lot of operations in place and have had some success,” he said.
“We’ve charged a number of people for arson attacks but there are still more to be charged.”
Insp Carson said he was “very happy” with the reduced crime statistics for Geelong.
“However, we still have some problems in Geelong relating to property damage including windows being smashed and letter boxes ripped out,” he said.
“Some of it has to do with licensed venues.
“We’ve also noticed an increase in graffiti but it’s a difficult one because we can’t be on every corner, so we’re looking for support from the community. We’re asking people to call us if they see someone damaging property.”
Liberal candidate for Geelong Scott Dixon said the statistics painted a bleak picture for community safety.
“We can’t even feel safe in the heart of our city, as the recent stabbings in the mall indicate,” he said.
“The Geelong police do a great job but they’re stretched at the moment, spending most of their time behind desks, looking after prisoners in cells and reacting to crimes, not preventing them.”