The rates of robbery and car theft have increased in Canberra, according to the latest figures issued by ACT Policing.
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Crime statistics issued yesterday recorded an almost 20 per cent increase in robberies across the territory when comparing the first quarter of this year with the same period last year.
The number of motor thefts also increased, from 291 reported incidents in the first three months of last year to 353 this year.
However, the territory recorded declines in reported incidents across a number of offences, including assault, property damage and traffic infringements.
ACT Policing said there was a drop of 17.8 per cent in the number of assaults reported to police in the first three months of the year when compared with the same period last year. The number of assaults reported in the city area has decreased from 101 to 76, or 24.7 per cent, and figures for the wider inner north area also dropped from 203 to 162 reported incidents.
Acting Superintendent of ACT Policing Intelligence, Chris Meagher, said while there were concerns - particularly surrounding increases in motor thefts - the updated figures would allow police to target problem areas.
''It's through analysing this data that police are able to allocate more patrols and resources into trouble areas and focus on patterns in particular crime types,'' he said.
Acting Superintendent Meagher said while the figures appeared to record some sizeable increases, it was important to acknowledge the explanation behind the spikes.
''For example, sexual offences in Narrabundah increased from two in the January to March last year to 32 in the first quarter of 2012,'' he said.
''These 32 sexual offences relate to one historical case which was reported to police in January 2012, and which has since been finalised.''
The inner north area recorded decreases in reported incidents across several offences, including assault, sexual assault and property damage.
Reported cases of property damage dropped across the territory, from 1642 in the first quarter last year to 1073 in January to March this year. The numbers of burglaries reported across the territory also dropped over the last quarter in comparison with the same period last year, from 747 to 700.
