Violent crime continues to rise in the South, driven by alcohol-fuelled assaults in Queenstown and increased reporting of family violence.
The total amount of crime recorded in Otago is down for the second year in a row, but violent crime has bucked this trend.
According to the crime figures for 2008, released by New Zealand Police yesterday, the type of violent crime that has increased since 2007 is mainly minor assaults, intimidation and threats, although serious assaults in the Otago Rural police area increased by 10.8% (from 296 to 328).
Those assaults were mainly recorded in Queenstown, prompting police there to suggest much of the problem is related to excessive consumption of alcohol in the town.
Total crime recorded in the police areas of Dunedin-Clutha and Otago Rural decreased by 3.3%, compared with a decrease of 0.2% across the whole Southern District, which also includes the Southland police area.
However, the number of violent crimes recorded in Otago rose 10.1%, and 10.5% across Southern.
The rise compared with a 13.4% rise in Otago in 2007, in line with increases in recorded violent crime in other parts of the country that year.
Police have attributed both years' increases, in the main, to a successful national campaign highlighting family violence and increased police training in recognising family violence.
Area commander for Dunedin-Clutha Inspector Dave Campbell said a 12% drop in disorder offences in the area was thanks to increased police controls and Campus Watch.
A lower number of car conversions (-17%) were recorded and theft was down (-6%) although fraud crimes were up 34%.
Insp Campbell said he needed to clarify the figures, but often one person, for example someone writing fraudulent cheques, could count for many separate offences.
The main concern for police in Dunedin-Clutha remained street violence and the best advice police could give people out at night was to stay in a group and not wander off by themselves, he said.
Recorded fraud was also up 125% (from 126 to 283) in Otago Rural, which covers the jurisdictions of the Waitaki, Central Otago and Queenstown Lakes district councils.
Area commander for Otago Rural Inspector Mike Cook said the large increase in fraud offences in the area could be attributed to a limited number of individuals who committed numerous frauds on retailers.
The figure contributed to an overall dishonesty offending increase in the area that included 35% more car conversions and 11% more thefts in 2008 than 2007.
However, burglary and receiving offences decreased over the same period.
Nationally, violent crime rose by 5.2 % last year compared with a 12.1% increase in 2007.
Total recorded crime rose 1.2% last year, in line with New Zealand's population growth over the same period.
Assistant police commissioner Grant Nicholls said the increase in violent crime was driven by recorded family violence, which increased by 12.4% in the year.
The greatest increases in recorded violent crimes were in the Eastern police district (14.5%), Waikato (11.8%), Southern (10%) and Canterbury (9.7%).
There were 109 homicides last year, compared with 88 in 2007, and 13 recorded family violence murders in 2008 compared with 15 in 2007, 16 in 2006, and a peak of 29 in 2005.
The homicide category includes attempted murder, illegal abortions, infanticide, accessory after the fact, aiding suicide and manslaughter.
"Any violent death is one too many as far as police are concerned," Mr Nicholls said.
Six districts recorded increases in crime, while six experienced a fall.
Auckland City recorded the biggest decrease in total crime with 4% fewer offences last year (from 431,381 to 426,380).
Police were pleased that the national rate for solving crime was the best it had been in a decade, at 46.7%.
Resolution rates for violence continued to rise, with 81.8% offences resolved.
Sexual offending rose by 3.3% last year and continued to make up less than 1% of recorded crime.
However, issues of under-reporting of sex crimes remained, Mr Nicholls said.
Drugs and anti-social offences increased 4.2%, mostly on the back of a rise in recorded cannabis offences.
Drug offences involving amphetamines, ecstasy and fantasy-type substances continued to decline, down 4.6% in 2008.
House burglaries were up 4.3%, with only Waikato and Northland districts recording decreases. - With NZPA
