The lid has been lifted on NSW crime, revealing how many times the most common and not-so-common crimes were committed in the state.
From theft and property damage to stalking and murder, one Sydney lawyer has analysed Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research data on what crimes were most commonly committed and where.
Statewide, the most common crime was theft — accounting for 35 per cent of all offences in the year to March 2024.
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That is not to be confused with robbery, which involves either threat or force, and was grouped with homicide and sexual offences as one of the least frequently committed crimes, with that sordid bundle accounting for just 3.5 per cent of all offences.
“Despite the general picture painted, there has been a slight decrease in overall crime numbers in the past five years across NSW,” Astor Legal principal lawyer Avinash Singh said.
City of Sydney was the LGA with the most crime, with 36,275 incidents reported in total.
Singh said it was “unsurprising” that non-domestic assault and stealing from a retail store were the most common crimes in Sydney given it is a nightlife and shopping district.
Sydney also had the highest number of other offences including steal from dwelling (1042), prohibited and regulated weapons offences (890), use/possess cannabis (1278), trespass (746), and assault police (308).
Where crimes occur in NSW
A concerning trend emerged for the Central Coast, which recorded the highest number of intimidation, stalking and harassment (2822), breach AVO (1353), and sexual assault (469) offences — all of which were in the state’s 20 most frequently committed crimes.
The highest proportion of offences relating to dealing and trafficking amphetamines (365) and arson (194) were also reported on the Central Coast.
Of the state’s most common offences, thousands were recorded across Western Sydney LGAs.
Breach bail conditions was the most common offence statewide, with a total of 54,000 offences in the year to March 2024, and Campbelltown was where the highest proportion of those offences (4260) were recorded.
Blacktown also recorded the highest proportion of three out of five of the state’s most common offences: malicious damage to property (2490 out of a state total of 49,367), fraud (2600 out of 46,058), and domestic assault (2171 out of 36,501).
As for matters of murder, there were 64 offences in total in the state, with the highest proportion occurring in Western Sydney — four incidents were reported in Blacktown, Canterbury-Bankstown, and Liverpool.
Canterbury-Bankstown also had the highest proportion of attempted murder offences (three out of 15 statewide).
Two out of 12 manslaughter charges, and one out of three murder accessory, conspiracy offences, were recorded in Bayside LGA.
Bayside was also where 27 out of 109 of the state’s importing drugs offences were recorded, but it should be noted that Sydney Airport falls within Bayside LGA.
Blacktown recorded the highest proportion of motor vehicle theft (752 of 14,516), but Newcastle had the highest number of the state’s steal from motor vehicle offences (1,853 of 28,648).
The harbour city also recorded the highest number of the state’s break and enter offences for both dwellings (1002 of 20,340) and non-dwellings.
