Number of sex assault victims rises sharply

There has been a sharp increase in the number of victims of sexual assault in Dunedin.

But police say that is likely down to more reporting, and not necessarily more incidents.

According to police data, there were 63 victimisations relating to sexual assault in 2019.

By November last year, there were 76, an increase of 20% (December’s figures are not available yet).

Detective Senior Sergeant Kallum Croudis, of Dunedin, said police had noticed a variety of agencies were reporting more potential cases of assault than they had in the past.

Police were also taking the default position that reports should be recorded as an offence and then passed to specialists in the police sexual assault teams to deal with.

Police had also been bracing for a possible 30% increase in sexual assault reports following last year’s lockdown but while there was an increase, it was not to the predicted level, he said.

While reports have increased, the New Zealand Crime and Victims Survey published last year showed 94% of sexual assaults in the period studied were not reported to police.

A common concern was a reluctance to report due to fear of the court process. Designated sexual violence courts have been piloted in Auckland and Whangarei, gaining positive feedback, but have so far not been extended.

Det Snr Sgt Croudis said he would be keen to see a similar programme in Dunedin.

Otepoti Collective Against Sexual Abuse (OCASA) also noticed an increase in referrals to its Survivor Support services in 2020.

Survivor Support team member Larissa Hinds said it was safe to say the police data would under-represent the true number of sexual harm incidents in Otago.

Referrals to OCASA came from various sources, including police and community agencies.

Numbers rose after the lockdown, she said.

"The increase in OCASA's referral numbers may also be related to the success of our rebrand, an increase in community visibility and outreach via our Prevention Education programming."