Break-ins on the rise in Orana Mid-Western Police District

About 2.30am on February 9 its alleged three people forced entry into a home on Torryburn Way in Dubbo.

Police believe they stole a wallet, a tablet, a mobile phone and keys before fleeing the location in one of the occupants' gold Ford sedan.

The vehicle was later found on Myall Street later that morning, where a 26-year-old man was arrested in the driver's seat.

A 15-year-old boy was also arrested over the break-in and it's believed investigations are ongoing.

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One of the occupants of the home told the Daily Liberal he was left shaken after he realised his car had been taken.

"My first thought was I hope it's not burned out," he said.

"Everyone was pretty freaked out, the thought of people being in your house while you're asleep.

"Especially because we live out of town it's not something we ever considered would happen."

According to the NSW the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR), across NSW break-ins to dwellings were down 11 per cent in the 12 months to September 2021.

In the Dubbo Regional Local Government Area they remained stable with 424 incidents recorded in 2021, compared to 506 the year before.

While the sharp fall in crime categories across the board has been attributed to COVID-19 lockdowns, in the Orana Mid-Western Police District police have noticed an upward trend in the recent weeks.

According to the district's social media accounts, so far this week until Thursday morning there had been 16 break-ins to homes. The week prior another 12.

However Orana Mid-Western Police District Commander, Danny Sullivan said there had been a significant police resource put into this area of crime, and there had been some significant arrests which are published each day.

"I'm aware and I have conversations with community all the time that there is unrest," he said.

"But it's important for our community to know, there's three arms of policing. There's prevention, disruption, and response.

"From a response point of view I'm very pleased to say there's been a significant number of arrests associated with that increase."

The district commander assured the community police were working around the clock to make sure those committing these offences were caught.

"If you're intent on causing harm to your community, we as the local police are more intent on tracking you down and bringing you before the court," Supt Sullivan said.

"We are working hard with our community to make this a safe place and we will not rest in that job."

However, Superintendent Sullivan said break-in crimes were easily preventable, and by introducing a number of small changes to the home, residents could lower the risk of becoming a victim of crime.

These include securing the home and making sure keys are not in an easily accessible place.

"A lot of the time we're seeing people's houses are unlocked their keys are in an easy place to get access to and in their cars they're leaving valuables in plain sight," Supt Sullivan said.

"Whilst we never, ever blame a victim for being a victim of crime, if we as a community can get on top of those three behaviours, then you're less likely to be a victim."

The family involved in last week's break-in have now said they had cameras installed.

"I don't know what kind of people would want to do that to other people, I couldn't imagine stealing someone else's car or breaking into someone else's house while they're asleep," the occupant said.