Operation ‘success’

By Shaun Inguanzo
A POLICE operation targeting serious crime in Greater Dandenong has reduced the incidence of armed robberies from a ‘daily occurrence’ to a ‘rarity’, the region’s top cop says.
Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Paul Evans this week said police would continue to run Operation Sarazen in Greater Dandenong as it had been successful in reducing the occurrence of assaults and robberies.
Mr Evans said the operation was launched in November in the wake of a series of violent crimes in Noble Park.
At that time, Mr Evans told Star that police would patrol Noble Park, Dandenong and Springvale en masse, and also with a special brawler van capable of holding six detainees if police encountered group or gang violence.
This week Mr Evans said police had conducted checks on almost 900 people congregating in public in Greater Dandenong at night since the operation’s beginning.
“We have made 137 arrests for offences ranging from armed robbery, sex offences, assaults, criminal damage and drugs,” Mr Evans said.
“The operation covers a whole array of different offences.”
Mr Evans said police had no intention of ending the operation while it was proving so successful.
“We will continue Operation Sarazen because it has made the streets safer,” he said.
“Assaults and robberies have dropped dramatically.
“Before the operation they were an everyday event, but now they are sort of a rarity.”
Mr Evans said police had executed 25 outstanding warrants on people loitering in the streets and issued 95 penalty notices.
He said the community was grateful for the police operation, with one Noble Park woman hugging and thanking him for officers’ efforts since November.
“People are feeling a lot more confident,” he said.
“The mobile police facility (caravan) is still around Noble Park, too.”
Meanwhile, Mr Evans said Greater Dandenong and Casey had avoided road deaths so far this holiday period, but following four fatalities in Region Five in the same period he urged residents to take it easy on the roads.
Mr Evans said people wrongly thought that accidents “won’t happen to them” if they speed.
Region Five figures for 2007 show the road toll was 77, up by eight deaths compared to 2006.
Mr Evans said in 2005 the region had 96 road-related deaths.