GUN offences in the Southern Grampians Shire have climbed more than five times in the twelve months to the end of June, jumping from 24.4 per 100,000 in 2022 to 140.9 in 2023.

The new data from Crime Statistics Victoria has revealed a dramatic and exponential rise in gun offences across the state with one local government area increasing more than 1000 per cent since Firearm Prohibition Orders (FPO) were introduced in 2018.

In the year ending June 2023, gun offences were most common in western Victoria with the local government area (LGA) of Central Goldfields recording a rate of 316 per 100,000 population - a significant increase from five years earlier, when only 90 were recorded.

In the neighbouring LGA of the Pyrenees Shire, that saw the sharpest increase in gun offences per capita at 1042 per cent.

An FPO is issued by police and prohibits a person over the age of 14 from acquiring, possessing, or carrying a firearm or firearm related item. It remains in place for 10 years for adults and five years for children aged 14-17.

FPOs aim to protect the community and reduce firearm related crime committed by organised crime and terrorist groups. If a person is served with an FPO they must immediately surrender any firearm or firearm related item in their possession.

These powers and offence provisions enable police to target people who don’t intend to use firearms for lawful purposes and who pose a risk to public safety, even if they are not considered a prohibited person under the Firearms Act.