Nine people were arrested as part of a proactive police operation, codenamed Venator, targeting alcohol-fueled violence and anti-social driving at the weekend.
On Friday (April 5) and Saturday (April 6) ACT Policing conducted its first in a series of high-visibility operations, targeting alcohol-fueled violence in Tuggeranong and the City entertainment district as well as anti-social driving on our roads.
Over the course of the weekend, 10 dedicated officers combined with members from General Duties, Beats Patrol, Traffic Operations, canine and the Alcohol Crime Targeting Team undertook 1934 random breath tests (of which five were positive), scanned 4715 vehicles using RAPID, issued 48 Traffic Infringement Notices and 12 Criminal Infringement Notices.
Nine arrests were also made.
Tuggeranong Police Station Sergeant Daryl Neit praised the success of the operation.
“Programs like this provide great intelligence in the fight against alcohol-fueled violence and anti-social driving,” Station Sergeant Neit said.
“We need to be proactive on this national issue, and targeted operations such as Venator demonstrate our commitment to achieving results in this ongoing battle, and in keeping the ACT safe,” Station Sergeant Neit said.
The intelligence-led operation was not made public beforehand, to give ACT Policing an accurate picture of current issues and trends across Canberra.
Police spent about 30 hours patrolling licensed premises, with Traffic Operations conducting targeted patrols of known anti-social driving ‘hot spots’.
This operation formed part of the broader ACT Policing Suburban Policing Strategy, a crime reduction initiative to engage with the community on real and perceived issues of crime and safety at a patrol level.
The operation ran as part of the new ‘proactive’ line of a trial roster launched 28 March to allow officers to focus specifically on proactive targeting.
Following on from the success of the operation, similar events will be conducted throughout 2013.
[Courtesy ACT Policing]
* Venator is latin for “hunter”