By Taylah Eastwell
The Yarra Ranges and surrounding communities will soon benefit from Victoria Police’s most significant investment in regional and suburban policing, with 51 additional officers headed for Yarra Ranges, Knox and Maroondah police divisions.
Eight new officers are set to be deployed to the Yarra Ranges police service area. The three localities are also set to share in a further 20 officers at a divisional level, including six new divisional Highway Patrol officers and 14 new members to the divisional Sexual Offences and Child Abuse Investigation Team.
The rollout forms part of the largest increase in regional police resources in Victoria Police’s 167-year history, with over 117 police stations across the state set to receive extra resources.
Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent said the additional numbers will assist officers to tackle key issues faced in rural areas, such as family violence, drugs, road trauma and natural disasters.
“It also means more police on the beat than ever before, who will be working around the clock to protect the community, prevent crime and hold offenders to account,” he said.
With training at the academy already underway, the new officers will be gradually rolled out to specialist areas and stations over the course of 12-months, beginning in May.
“The influx of officers in regional areas will also assist us in enhancing our ability to provide immediate assistance when state disasters occur, such as bushfires or floods,” Deputy Commissioner Nugent said.
The new officers will be a welcomed addition to significant investments in regional policing over the past two years, with Victoria Police aiming to deploy more than 3,000 officers in total by April 2022.
