In the last 12 months the number of criminal incidents in Warrnambool has increased by 1.4 per cent, the state’s quarterly crime statistics revealed. 

Of those figures, there was a 34 per cent spike in drug trafficking across the city, but a 1.5 per cent drop in use and possession-related incidents.

Incidents against a person have also increased, with 53 more assaults and 35 more stalking and harassment offences reported than the year before. 

But property and deception offences have fallen considerably, with 27 per cent less burglaries reported in the year to September 30.

Warrnambool police Inspector Gary Coombes said targeting recidivist offenders was leading to more criminals being caught.

“We know that over 50 per cent of crime is attributable to recidivist offenders and we have been focusing heavily on the ones we know are priority targets," he said. 

“As a consequence, you will see there are a lot more charges being laid. 

“Another major influence is the changes to the Bail Act, which enables us to remand repeat offenders more easily, so we’re not only targeting them but taking them off the street, too.”

Inspector Coombes said specialist tasking teams would continue to focus on community safety.

“We have a dedicated crew of detectives with a sole focus on investigating family violence matters, including repeat offenders,” he said.

“A lot of these incidents generally come from a familiar association between the victim and the offender.  In this part of the world it is safe to go out at night and while we certainly still get some issues around our CBD and licensed venues, that is something we will continue to focus on.

“In terms of drug management, we don’t plan on taking our foot off the pedal anytime soon. It’s all police-generated work, so it’s our team intercepting and targeting the right offenders.” 

Across the south-west, there were 5890 incidents reported.