Victoria's top cop said more young people are going from 'zero to 100' when it comes to offending, in a cultural shift he thinks could be linked in part to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said the "marked escalation" in youth crime could partially be linked to the COVID -19 lockdowns.
"We arrest a lot of those young offenders, there are around 600 gang members that we're chasing down."Of particular concern for Victoria Police is violent offending, including home break-ins and vehicle thefts, potentially to impress peers on social media. Commissioner Patton said he does not "have the answers" as to what was causing the rise, but Victoria Police was "looking at everything", including the impact of the pandemic and lockdowns.
"If we look back, prior to the pandemic, we weren't seeing this zero to 100 offending – 'I'm a cleanskin, who's gone to committing the most serious of crimes,'" he explained. It increases the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 12, but the government has walked away from a promise to move it to 14.Youth offending may not be the only crime affected by the pandemic and the lockdowns.
"All I know is, you can't come through a period of time like that, where you're basically in isolation and people's lives are tipped upside down – that must change people."Victoria's peak Aboriginal bodies have unanimously condemned the Victorian government's decision to backflip on a pledge to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14.
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