Stealing from retail stores has increased by 11.7 per cent in the year to March 31, 2026, compared to the same period last year, according to new recorded crime data from the Crime Statistics Agency (CSA).
Overall alleged offender incidents increased 8.6 per cent to 195,343 in the last 12 months, as did the rate up 6.6 per cent to 3,058.5 per 100,000. Theft incidents increased by 6.3 per cent or 2,626 to 44,257 alleged offender incidents.
Specifically, retail theft incidents increased 11.7 per cent, or by 2,195, to 20,998 alleged offender incidents.
CSA data also shows that any and all recorded crimes occurring within retail spaces are at peak levels in Victoria, with over 94,100 incidents reported in the year to March 2026. This is down slightly from the same period to March 2025, which hit 98,050, but is up from 2024, when it hit 78,588.
The rate of recorded assaults in retail spaces continues to grow, hitting 5,258 incidences in the year to March 2026. This was at 5,272 offences in the 2025 period, and has grown steadily since the same period in 2017 when it was at 2,925.
This all comes as the rate of all and any recorded offences decreased, down 1.9 per cent to 8,690.8 per 100,000 Victorians in the last 12 months, while the number of offences decreased 0.2 per cent to 625,426.
Justice procedures offences had the largest increase in the last 12 months, up 5.8 per cent or 5,488 to 100,902 offences. The main drivers of the increase were breaches of orders offences, up 4,892 to 86,227 and breach bail conditions offences, which were up 7,039 to 16,894 offences in the last 12 months.
In the 12 months to 31 March 2026, the number of criminal incidents decreased, down 1 per cent or 4,807 to 468,711 incidents. The rate also decreased, down 2.7 per cent to 6,513.1 per 100,000 Victorians.
Adult alleged offender incidents rose 10.8 per cent to 171,812 in the last 12 months, whereas incidents attributed to youth decreased 6.0 per cent to 22,654.
The victimisation rate decreased by 4.4 per cent to 3,726.0 reports per 100,000 Victorians. The number of person-related victim reports was down 2.7 per cent to 268,144, and organisation reports were down 2.8 per cent to 112,483.
The drop in person victim reports was primarily driven by burglary/break and enter (down 15.1 per cent to 25,484).
“For the first time since 2022, incidents alleged to be linked to youth offenders have decreased, with adults now responsible for 88 per cent of offender incidents,” CSA chief statistician Fiona Dowsley said.
“There has been a 10.8 per cent increase in adult offender incidents recorded over the last 12 months, driven by increases in breaches of bail conditions, stealing from retail stores and breaches of family violence orders.”