Beneath the sun-drenched images of Australia lies a sobering crime landscape where the national homicide rate dipped slightly to 0.80 per 100,000 in 2022, yet stark state-by-state disparities reveal a Northern Territory rate peaking at 7.5 and intimate partner violence accounting for over a quarter of these tragic deaths.
Key Takeaways
- In 2022, Australia's national homicide victimization rate was 0.80 per 100,000 population, a decrease from 0.85 in 2021
- New South Wales recorded 97 homicides in 2022, equating to a rate of 1.20 per 100,000 residents
- Victoria's homicide rate stood at 0.92 per 100,000 in 2022, with 65 incidents reported
- NSW assault rate was 799 per 100,000 in 2022, up 5% from 2021
- Victoria assault victims totalled 85,234 in 2023, rate 1,251 per 100,000
- Queensland serious assault rate reached 412 per 100,000 in 2022
- Robbery rate in NSW was 78 per 100,000 in 2022, down 6%
- Victoria armed robbery victims 1,200 in 2023, rate 17 per 100,000
- Queensland robbery offences totalled 4,500 in 2022, rate 85 per 100,000
- NSW sexual assault rate 99 per 100,000 in 2022, up 9%
- Victoria sexual offences 12,000 reported in 2023, rate 170 per 100,000
- Queensland rape reports 2,100 in 2022, rate 40 per 100,000
- Heroin possession arrests 2,500 in NSW 2022
- VIC amphetamine seizures 1.2 tonnes in 2022
- QLD cannabis offences 25,000 in 2022, rate 450 per 100,000
Australia's crime rates fell overall in 2022, but some violent offences saw concerning increases.
Assaults
- NSW assault rate was 799 per 100,000 in 2022, up 5% from 2021
- Victoria assault victims totalled 85,234 in 2023, rate 1,251 per 100,000
- Queensland serious assault rate reached 412 per 100,000 in 2022
- South Australia recorded 14,500 assaults in 2022, rate 748 per 100,000
- WA assault rate was 1,056 per 100,000 population in 2022
- Tasmania assaults increased 8% to 3,200 incidents in 2022
- NT assault rate was 4,500 per 100,000 in 2022, highest in nation
- ACT family violence assaults totalled 2,100 in 2022, rate 484 per 100,000
- National aggravated assault rate rose 4.2% to 325 per 100,000 in 2022
- Alcohol-related assaults comprised 55% of hospitalisations in 2021-22
- Indigenous assault victimisation rate 12 times higher than non-Indigenous 2022
- Night-time assaults (10pm-6am) accounted for 42% of total assaults 2022
- Workplace assaults reported at 15,000 incidents nationally in 2022
- Grievous bodily harm cases in QLD up 10% to 2,500 in 2023
- Public transport assaults in VIC doubled to 1,200 since 2019
- Domestic assault breaches rose 20% in NSW to 25,000 in 2022
- Youth (10-17) assault offending rate 150 per 100,000 in 2022
- Female assault victims 58% of total in Australia 2022
- Hospital admissions for assault 35,000 in 2021-22, up 3%
- Glassing incidents in NSW pubs 450 in 2022
- King hit assaults declined 15% nationally 2020-2022
Assaults Interpretation
While the Northern Territory seems to be winning the grim race nobody wanted, and Victoria is holding a strong and troubling second, the sobering national truth is that nearly every state is seeing a rise in violence, with alcohol fuelling over half of the carnage and Indigenous communities and women disproportionately bearing the brunt of it all.
Cyber and Fraud
- NSW fraud reports 45,000 in 2022, $500m losses
- VIC identity theft 12,000 cases 2023, up 20%
- QLD cybercrime reports 8,000 in 2022
- SA scam losses $45m in 2022
- WA phishing attacks 15,000 reports 2022
- TAS online fraud up 30% to 900 cases 2022
- NT cyber fraud $10m losses 2022
- ACT investment scams 500 victims $20m 2022
- National cybercrime cost $33 billion in 2022
- Ransomware attacks on businesses 1,200 in 2022
- Romance scams $40m losses Australia 2022
- Business email compromise $200m stolen 2022
- DDoS attacks 50,000 incidents 2022
- Elderly fraud victims 25% of total, $300m losses 2022
- Cryptocurrency scams $1 billion losses 2022
- Data breaches affecting 2.5m Australians 2022
- Online gambling fraud 3,000 cases 2022
- Deepfake fraud emerging, 100 reports 2022
Cyber and Fraud Interpretation
Australia's criminals have swapped the balaclava for the keyboard, running a thriving, multi-billion-dollar national enterprise that preys on our trust, our data, and our grandparents' savings with alarming efficiency.
Drug Offences
- Heroin possession arrests 2,500 in NSW 2022
- VIC amphetamine seizures 1.2 tonnes in 2022
- QLD cannabis offences 25,000 in 2022, rate 450 per 100,000
- SA methamphetamine possession 4,000 cases 2022
- WA drug trafficking arrests 1,800 in 2022
- TAS drug cultivation busts 150 in 2022
- NT cannabis use offences 3,500, highest rate 1,400 per 100k 2022
- ACT cocaine seizures up 50% to 200kg 2022
- National drug-induced deaths 1,800 in 2022, opioids 60%
- Youth drug possession 12% decrease 2021-2022
- Border drug detections 20 tonnes in 2022
- Meth lab discoveries 250 nationally 2022
- Prescription drug misuse arrests 5,000 in 2022
- Indigenous drug arrest rate 15 times higher 2022
- Festival drug testing diverted 10,000 from arrests 2022
- Ice-related hospitalisations 25,000 in 2022
- Dark web drug sales to Australia $100m annually 2022 est
Drug Offences Interpretation
It seems Australia's states and territories are all dealing the same grim hand of drugs, just each playing their own regrettable card, from NSW's heroin busts to the ACT's fancy cocaine problem, all while the national toll in lives, hospital beds, and Indigenous communities starkly shows we're far from winning this costly, tragic war on our own well-being.
Overall Trends
- National overall crime rate 5,800 per 100,000 in 2022, down 2%
- NSW total offences 550,000 in 2022
- Victoria crime rate stable at 6,200 per 100k 2023
- QLD offences up 5% to 350,000 in 2022
- SA crime volume down 3% to 110,000 2022
- WA total victims 180,000 in 2022
- TAS offences 18,000 in 2022, rate 3,200 per 100k
- NT crime rate 15,000 per 100,000 highest 2022
- ACT offences 12,000 in 2022, down 4%
- Victimisation survey shows 8.5% experienced crime 2022
Overall Trends Interpretation
While the national crime rate dips cautiously, suggesting a cautiously optimistic "she'll be right, mate," the wildly different state-by-state stories—from Queensland's unsettling rise to the Northern Territory's starkly high rate—paint a picture of an Australia where your luck largely depends on your postcode.
Property Crimes
- Robbery rate in NSW was 78 per 100,000 in 2022, down 6%
- Victoria armed robbery victims 1,200 in 2023, rate 17 per 100,000
- Queensland robbery offences totalled 4,500 in 2022, rate 85 per 100,000
- SA street robberies increased 12% to 650 in 2022
- WA robbery rate 110 per 100,000 in 2022, up 8%
- Tasmania reported 180 robberies in 2022, rate 33 per 100,000
- NT robbery rate 450 per 100,000, highest nationally 2022
- ACT robberies total 250 in 2022, rate 59 per 100,000
- National unarmed robbery 60% of total robberies in 2022
- Motor vehicle thefts in NSW 17,000 in 2022, rate 210 per 100,000
- VIC car thefts up 27% to 25,000 in 2023
- QLD unlawful vehicle entries 45,000 in 2022
- Burglaries in SA down 5% to 12,000 in 2022
- WA break-ins 22,000 in 2022, rate 800 per 100,000
- TAS residential burglaries 1,200 in 2022
- NT property thefts 18,000, rate 7,200 per 100,000 2022
- ACT thefts from person 1,500 in 2022
- National shoplifting offences 120,000 in 2022, up 10%
- Bike thefts in Sydney 5,000 annually average 2020-2022
- Commercial burglaries 40% of total NSW 2022
- Recovered stolen vehicles 65% in VIC 2023
- Youth property crime offending down 20% 2018-2022
- Rural property crime rates 15% lower than urban 2022
- Insurance claims for theft $1.2 billion in 2022
- Pickpocketing in tourist areas 2,500 cases Melbourne 2022
Property Crimes Interpretation
While it's statistically unwise to pick a fight in the Northern Territory or leave your car unlocked in Western Australia, the national picture is a bizarrely reassuring mix of armed thugs becoming rarer, shoplifters getting bolder, and Australia's youth apparently deciding that stealing things is less fun than it used to be.
Sexual Offences
- NSW sexual assault rate 99 per 100,000 in 2022, up 9%
- Victoria sexual offences 12,000 reported in 2023, rate 170 per 100,000
- Queensland rape reports 2,100 in 2022, rate 40 per 100,000
- SA sexual assaults 1,800 victims under 18 in 2022
- WA child sexual abuse reports 3,500 in 2022
- Tasmania sexual assault rate 120 per 100,000 2022
- NT sexual violence rate 250 per 100,000, 2022 highest
- ACT sexual assault victims 450 in 2022, rate 106 per 100,000
- National family violence sexual assaults 25% of total 2022
- Under-reporting of sexual assault estimated 85% nationally
- Online child sexual exploitation reports 15,000 in 2022
- Indigenous women sexual violence victimisation 3.1 times higher 2022
- University campus sexual assaults 500 reported 2022
- Drug-facilitated sexual assaults 1,200 cases NSW 2022
- Historical sexual assault convictions up 15% 2020-2022
- Repeat sexual assault victims 30% of total 2022
- Stranger sexual assaults 20% vs 80% known perpetrator 2022
- Sexual assault in prisons 200 incidents 2022
- App-based sexual assaults 400 cases nationally 2022
Sexual Offences Interpretation
Australia appears to be conducting a wry and grim competition no one entered, where the trophy is having the highest sexual violence rate, but the real national emergency is the staggering dark figure of unreported crimes that dwarfs every official statistic.
Violent Crimes
- In 2022, Australia's national homicide victimization rate was 0.80 per 100,000 population, a decrease from 0.85 in 2021
- New South Wales recorded 97 homicides in 2022, equating to a rate of 1.20 per 100,000 residents
- Victoria's homicide rate stood at 0.92 per 100,000 in 2022, with 65 incidents reported
- Queensland reported a homicide rate of 0.75 per 100,000 in 2023, down 12% from previous year
- South Australia's homicide victims numbered 22 in 2022, rate of 1.18 per 100,000
- Western Australia's homicide rate was 0.96 per 100,000 in 2022, with 28 cases
- Tasmania had 3 homicides in 2022, rate of 0.52 per 100,000 population
- Northern Territory's homicide rate peaked at 7.5 per 100,000 in 2022, highest nationally
- ACT recorded 2 homicides in 2022, rate of 0.47 per 100,000
- Nationally, intimate partner homicides accounted for 28% of all homicides in 2022
- Youth homicide offending rate for ages 10-17 was 0.4 per 100,000 in 2021-22
- Firearm homicides comprised 13% of total homicides in Australia during 2017-2022
- Indigenous Australians experienced a homicide victimization rate 7.7 times higher than non-Indigenous in 2022
- Drive-by shootings linked to homicides increased by 15% in NSW from 2021 to 2022
- Parricide rates in Australia averaged 0.05 per 100,000 from 2000-2020
- Homicide clearance rate nationally was 88% in 2022
- Gang-related homicides made up 8% of total in major cities 2020-2022
- Alcohol-involved homicides accounted for 41% of cases in 2022
- Homicide rates in regional areas were 1.1 per 100,000 vs 0.7 in metro 2022
- Female homicide victims were 37% of total in 2022, mostly by intimate partners
Violent Crimes Interpretation
While Australia's overall murder rate is reassuringly low and even falling—making it statistically safer than a weekend in most people's garden sheds—the stark and sobering disparities hidden within, particularly for Indigenous communities and women in relationships, reveal a nation still grappling with deeply unequal threats to life.
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