Vandalism and property damage added to crimes now able to be reported online

“If it’s happened, report online. If it’s happening, call” – that’s the message behind ACT Policing’s new online option for reporting non-urgent and minor crimes throughout Canberra.

It’s taken three years and some community blow-back to put together the new system, which will enable people to file an online report for crimes that don’t require immediate police attendance.

These include vandalism incidents and non-urgent minor property damage, with the potential to expand the reportable crimes in the future.

ACT Policing Deputy Chief Police Officer Doug Boudry stressed this was an additional option for people to access, and would help police with the triage and dispatch of services.

“Enabling this reporting to be done online will free up our call takers to respond to more serious, time-critical matters, and allow us to serve the community more efficiently,” he said.

About 3000 Triple Zero calls are made to ACT Policing’s communications centre each month.

There were concerns when it was first announced that the online form had to be developed because of a lack of police resources.

However, DCPO Boudry said he felt that wasn’t the entire picture.

“I think this is not necessarily driven by resourcing but making sure we’re covering as much crime as we can in the community, and make sure that we’re responding to that,” he said.

“Sometimes people actually just want to report the crime, not for a police response but because they might need it for insurance purposes, or for some other process that they might need to go through … so it’s recorded.”

There’s also a concern some people may not bother to report a crime at all, thinking they’re taking up police’s time or that it’s not important.

DCPO Boudry saw the online option as another chance for police to gather evidence and have it all on record.

“Not everything is a policing response, so we can actually get a better picture and call on the services of other government departments, particularly for graffiti or minor property damage, they might be better situated to respond to that,” he said.

“It’s really about trying to get those non-urgent matters. If we’re seeing a range of different matters [reported online] happen in a particular area, we’ll dispatch a patrol to take care of that.

“I would like to assure the community they will receive the same level of service from ACT Policing however they choose to report an incident.”

Historic sexual assaults and petrol drive-offs can already be reported online, with this launch expanding on that service.

The ACT Government provided $400,000 for the project as part of the Police Services Model.

Police and Emergency Services Minister Mick Gentleman said it was about keeping up with the digital age.

“It is great that we can continue to adapt the delivery model and allow for new and innovative ways to be embedded within the service,” he said.

Anyone who reports via the new online form will need to provide their details such as a name and contact number, while reporting via the Crime Stoppers online form can be anonymous.

There’s still the option of calling the policing hotline on 13 11 44 or heading into a police station to report a non-urgent matter.

In an emergency or life-threatening situation, call Triple Zero (000).