Police are calling for people to act more safely on the state’s roads after 17 drivers were caught speeding during a Geelong West blitz.
Seventeen drivers were detected speeding, and five were arrested during a proactive police operation in Geelong West on August 20.
Geelong Police Senior Sergeant Aaron Riches said the blitz was part of an ongoing series of safer communities’ operations with police targeting different areas of Geelong every week.
Mr Riches also said that the number one priority of the police was to keep the community safe.
“In just a four-hour period we detected 17 speeding drivers, which is completely unacceptable,” he said.
“Through our safer communities’ approach, operations like this allow us to target the issues causing the most harm in Geelong, including dangerous driving.
“We’ve lost four lives on Geelong’s roads this year compared to just one at the same time last year. A damming statistic that devastatingly impacts local families.
“This particular operation forms part of a series of weekly operations we are running across Geelong to prevent crimes from occurring and to keep our community safe.”
Nine drivers were caught speeding between 15km/h and 25km/h over the speed limit, with police handing out a total of $6742 in fines.
Three people were given an infringement notice and fined $407 each for allegedly speeding in a 60km/h zone, including a 39-year-old Craigieburn man at 78km/h, a 30-year-old Little River man at 76km/h and a 31-year-old Tarneit woman at 82km/h.
Five people were also arrested, including a 42-year-old man and a 24-year-old woman, both from Geelong West, who were arrested after allegedly stealing $470 worth of groceries and changing price labels to reduce costs at checkout.
They were both charged with theft and obtaining property by deception and were also bailed to appear in the Geelong Magistrates Court on December 11.
Three other people were also cautioned for theft and cannabis possession during the blitz.
Anyone with information about retail theft, anti-social behaviour or dangerous driving is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
