More than 180 bail breaches in Melton were recorded in the past year.
Statistics released by the Crime Statistics Agency Victoria revealed that the municipality had 186 breaches of bail for the year ending in June. There were 76 bail breaches in Moorabool.
In a statement, Victoria Police said that areas with court houses – such as Melton and Moorabool, with a court located in Bacchus Marsh – usually had higher incidences of breaches of bail than those without courts.
Police said that there was no cause for community concern.
“Local police target offenders wanted for failing to answer bail, prioritising offenders identified as being a high-risk to the community,” a police spokesperson said.
“The addition of protective services officers in and around the public transport network has also led to an increase in the identification of individuals wanted on warrants for various offences, including breaching bail.
“Beyond court attendance, a vast range of bail conditions can be set and include curfews, requirements to reside at a particular address or reporting requirements.
“These conditions are set to help ensure the safety of the public and help ensure that the alleged offender complies with the justice process.”
Across Victoria, Melbourne topped the bail breaches list with 1303, followed by Frankston (658), Heidelberg (573) and Ringwood (565).
In total, there were 14,075 bail breaches across Victoria for the 12-month period to June. That was significantly less than the 18,940 recorded in 2015.
But police said the number was still too high as bail breaches were easily avoided.
“People who know they have outstanding warrants should come forward, rather than wait to get caught,” the police spokesperson said.
Attorney-General Martin Pakula said last week the drop in bail breach numbers was “welcome”.
“It could be due to a number of factors including fewer people are receiving bail,” he said. “We’ve really increased the consequences, particularly for absconding from bail.”
