Recorded Crime - Victims

There were 370 victims of homicide and related offences – which includes murder, attempted murder and manslaughter – recorded in Australia in 2021. This was a decrease of 7% (26 victims) from the previous year. The victimisation rate also decreased to 1.4 victims per 100,000 persons, the lowest rate recorded for this offence since the time series began in 1993.

In 2021, most homicide and related offences:

• were murders (52% or 193 victims)
• occurred at a residential location (63% or 232 victims)
• involved the use of a weapon (61% or 225 victims)

For victims of homicide and related offences:

• the majority (70%) were male (259 victims)
• most were aged 18 years and over (87% or 323 victims)

More than a quarter (28%) of incidents were family and domestic violence (FDV) related (105 victims).

In 2021, police recorded 31,118 victims of sexual assault in Australia. This was an increase of 13% (3,580 victims) from 2020.

Since 1993, the rate of victimisation for sexual assault has increased from 69 to 121 victims per 100,000 persons in 2021. This is the highest rate of victimisation for sexual assault recorded by police across the twenty-nine year time series.

The number of recorded victims of sexual assault increased in all states and territories except the Northern Territory, with the largest increases in:

• Queensland (up 1,771 victims or 35%)
• Victoria (up 651 victims or 12%)
• Western Australia (up 516 victims or 17%)

The number of recorded victims of sexual assault in the Northern Territory decreased by 4% or 15 victims.

For victims of sexual assault:

• the number of female victims (26,669 victims) was six times more than the number of male victims (4,350 victims)
• around three in five victims (61%) were under 18 years of age at the date of incident (18,925 victims)

Most sexual assaults:

• were reported to police within a year (69% or 21,378 victims)
• occurred at a residential location (67% or 20,963 victims), most commonly a private dwelling (63% or 19,713 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (94% or 29,121 victims)

Over a third (37%) of sexual assault incidents were FDV related (11,367 victims).

There were 9,140 victims of robbery recorded in Australia in 2021, a decrease from the previous year of 3% (269 victims).

While there was an overall decrease in robbery nationally, victims of robbery increased in all jurisdictions, except New South Wales and Victoria.

The number of victims of robbery decreased in:

• New South Wales (down 451 victims or 18%)
• Victoria (down 339 victims or 13%)

The largest increases in the number of victims of robbery were recorded in:

• Queensland (up 264 victims or 12%)
• South Australia (up 73 victims or 16%)
• Western Australia (up 65 victims or 6%)

The overall decrease was driven by armed robbery (down 354 victims or 8%). There was a slight increase in unarmed robbery (up 80 victims or 2%).

For victims of robbery:

• there were 8,155 person victims (89%) and 985 organisation victims (11%)
• three-quarters (75%) of person victims were male (6,105 victims)

Of all robberies:

• around a third (34%) occurred on a street/footpath (3,122 victims)
• less than half (48%) involved the use of a weapon (4,392 victims)
• almost a quarter (23%) involved a knife (2,088 victims)

In 2021, police recorded 646 victims of blackmail/extortion. This was a 24% increase (124 victims) from 2020 and is the highest recorded number of victims for this offence in the time series since 2009.

For victims of blackmail/extortion:

• there were 618 person victims (96%) and 28 organisation victims (4%)
• three-quarters (75%) of person victims were male (465 victims)

The overall increase in blackmail/extortion victims in 2021 was largely driven by an increase in male victims, up 39% (130 victims) from the previous year.

The number of victims of unlawful entry with intent increased by 4% in 2021 to 139,094 victims. This increase follows the lowest number of victims recorded in the time series (133,871 victims) in 2020, coinciding with the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions.

The largest increases of victims of unlawful entry with intent occurred in:

• New South Wales (up 2,116 victims or 8%)
• Western Australia (up 2,043 victims or 10%)
• Queensland (up 1,550 victims or 4%)
• Northern Territory (up 996 victims or 27%)

In some jurisdictions, the number of victims of unlawful entry with intent decreased. The largest decrease occurred in Victoria (down 1,570 victims or 5%).

Most unlawful entry with intent:

• involved the taking of property (62% or 85,565 victims)
• occurred at a private dwelling (60% or 83,595 victims)

There were 49,742 victims of motor vehicle theft in 2021, an increase of 3% from the previous year (up 1,647 victims).

The number of victims of motor vehicle theft increased in most states and territories, with the largest increases in:

• Western Australia (up 1,239 victims or 23%)
• Queensland (up 752 victims or 6%)
• New South Wales (up 482 victims or 5%)

The number of victims of motor vehicle theft decreased in:

• Victoria (down 1,280 victims or 10%)
• South Australia (down 116 victims or 3%)

The most common locations for motor vehicle theft were:

• outbuilding or residential land (including a driveway, carport, or garage) (56% or 27,590 victims)
• street/footpath (24% or 11,703 victims)

In 2021, the number of other thefts increased by 1% to 442,465 victims, up 5,838 victims from 2020. Other theft includes offences such as theft from a person and theft from retail premises.

The number of victims of other theft increased in most states and territories, with the largest increases in:

• Western Australia (up 6,599 victims or 11%)
• Queensland (up 5,245 victims or 5%)
• South Australia (up 2,704 victims or 7%)

The number of victims of other theft decreased in:

• Victoria (down 6,660 victims or 6%)
• New South Wales (down 4,523 victims or 5%)

The most common locations for other theft were:

• retail locations (169,612 victims or 38%)
• residential locations (138,182 victims or 31%)

There were 81 victims of homicide and related offences in New South Wales in 2021, a decrease of 18 victims from the previous year.

For victims of homicide and related offences:

• over three-quarters (78%) were male (63 victims)
• around three-fifths (59%) knew the offender (48 victims)
• the most common age was between 35 and 54 years (36% or 29 victims)
• almost a third (32%) were family and domestic violence (FDV) related (26 victims)
• three-quarters involved the use of a weapon (75% or 61 victims)
• the majority (63%) occurred at a residential location (51 victims)

The number of victims of assault recorded in New South Wales remained relatively stable, decreasing by less than 1% (218 victims) from 2020 to 64,689 victims in 2021.

The victimisation rate also declined, from 795 to 790 victims per 100,000 persons. This was the lowest victimisation rate for victims of assault recorded in New South Wales since 1997.

Most assaults:

• occurred at a residential location (60% or 38,536 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (96% or 62,294 victims)

For victims of assault:

• over half (52%) were male (33,425 victims)
• almost a quarter (23%) were aged between 25 and 34 years at the date of report (15,037 victims)
• a higher proportion of females were assaulted by a family member (53% or 16,545 victims), compared with males (25% or 8,281 victims)

There were 11,546 victims of sexual assault in 2021, up 2% (270 victims) from the previous year. This was the highest number of victims recorded for this offence in New South Wales across the twenty-nine year time series.

The victimisation rate also increased from the previous year to the highest recorded in 2021, from 138 to 141 victims per 100,000 persons.

Most sexual assaults in 2021:

• occurred at a residential location (65% or 7,529 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (almost 100% or 11,517 victims)

Most victims of sexual assault:

• were female (83% or 9,540 victims)
• were aged under 18 years at the date of incident (71% or 8,163 victims)
• knew the offender (83% or 9,580 victims)
• reported the incident to police within a year (65% or 7,535 victims)

Around two in five (41%) sexual assault incidents were FDV related (4,711 victims).

The number of victims of robbery decreased to the lowest number recorded in the twenty-nine year time series, down 18% (451 victims) from 2020 to 2,031 victims in 2021.

For victims of robbery:

• more than a third (37%) of incidents occurred on a street or footpath (746 victims)
• the majority (58%) of incidents did not involve the use of a weapon (1,169 victims)
• 90% were person victims (1,832 victims) and 10% were organisations (199 victims)
• the majority (79%) of person victims were male (1,440 victims)
• one in five (21%) person victims were males aged between 10 and 17 years at the date of report (386 victims)

The number of victims of unlawful entry with intent increased by 8% (2,116 victims) from the previous year to 28,200 victims in 2021.

Almost three-quarters of these offences occurred at a residential location (73% or 20,500 victims).

There were 9,917 victims of motor vehicle theft recorded in New South Wales in 2021, an increase of 5% (482 victims) from the previous year. This increase follows the lowest number of motor vehicle thefts recorded in the time series in 2020 (9,435 victims), coinciding with the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions.

An outbuilding or residential land (including a driveway, carport or garage) was the most common location from which a motor vehicle was stolen (55% or 5,434 victims).

The number of victims of other theft decreased by 5% (4,523 victims) from the previous year to 94,722 victims in 2021.

Other theft offences occurred most commonly at a retail location (35% or 33,250 victims).

There were 84 victims of homicide and related offences recorded in Victoria in 2021, a decrease of 14 victims from the previous year.

For victims of homicide and related offences:

• most were male (76% or 64 victims)
• almost two-fifths (38%) were family and domestic violence (FDV) related (32 victims)
• two-thirds (66%) knew the offender (55 victims)

Most homicide and related offences (66%) occurred at a residential location (55 victims).

The number of victims of sexual assault recorded in Victoria increased by 12% (651 victims) from the previous year to 6,164 victims in 2021. This was the first annual increase in the recorded number of victims of sexual assault since 2017 and the highest number recorded in the twenty-nine year time series.

The victimisation rate also increased from 82 victims in 2020 to 93 victims per 100,000 persons in 2021 but remained lower than the highest recorded rate in 2017 (95 victims per 100,000 persons).

Between 2020 and 2021, the number of victims who reported the incident to police:

• within a year increased by 16% (568 victims) to 4,073 victims
• one year and over increased by 4% (86 victims) to 2,095 victims

Most sexual assaults:

• occurred at a residential location (69% or 4,259 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (98% or 6,007 victims)

Most victims of sexual assault:

• were female (88% or 5,440 victims)
• knew the offender (75% or 4,599 victims)

For sexual assault:

• a greater proportion of male victims (64% or 446 victims) were aged under 18 years at the date of incident than female victims (46% or 2,513 victims)
• more than two-fifths (41%) were FDV related (2,522 victims)

There were 2,381 victims of robbery recorded in Victoria in 2021, a decrease of 13% (339 victims) from the previous year.

More than half of robberies:

• involved the use of a weapon (57% or 1,353 victims)
• occurred at a community location (54% or 1,287 victims), most commonly a street or footpath (36% or 849 victims)

Most victims of robbery were person victims (96% or 2,288 victims) and 4% were organisations (93 victims).

For person victims of robbery:

• the majority were male (79% or 1,815 victims)
• almost a third were aged under 18 years at the date of report (32% or 742 victims)

The number of victims of unlawful entry with intent recorded in Victoria decreased by 5% (1,570 victims) from the previous year to 29,716 victims in 2021. This was the lowest recorded number of victims in the twenty-nine year time series.

Around two-thirds of unlawful entry with intent:

• involved the taking of property (64% or 18,920 victims)
• occurred at a residential location (67% or 19,934 victims)

There were 12,132 victims of motor vehicle theft recorded in Victoria in 2021, a decrease of 10% (1,280 victims) from the previous year.

An outbuilding or residential land (including a driveway, carport or garage) was the most common location from which a motor vehicle was stolen (49% or 5,989 victims).

The number of victims of other theft decreased by 6% (6,660 victims) from the previous year to 106,776 victims in 2021.

The most common locations for other theft were:

• outbuilding or residential land (27% or 29,034 victims)
• retail locations (27% or 29,238 victims)

In 2021, there were 82 victims of homicide and related offences recorded in Queensland, a decrease of 13 victims from the previous year.

For victims of homicide and related offences:

• most were male (72% or 59 victims)
• most incidents occurred at a residential location (72% or 59 victims)

There were 6,891 victims of sexual assault recorded in Queensland in 2021, an increase of 35% (1,771 victims) from the previous year. The victimisation rate also increased from 99 to 132 victims per 100,000 persons.

For victims of sexual assault:

• most were female (87% or 5,964 victims)
• most were aged under 18 years at the date of incident (60% or 4,139 victims)
• half (50%) were aged under 18 years when they reported the incident (3,435 victims)
• most knew the offender (64% or 4,408 victims)

Most sexual assaults:

• occurred at a residential location (67% or 4,634 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (94% or 6,455 victims)
• were reported within a year (69% or 4,730 victims)

About a third of sexual assaults (31%) were family and domestic violence (FDV) related (2,156 victims).

In 2021, police recorded 2,483 victims of robbery in Queensland. This was an increase of 12% (264 victims) from the previous year.

For victims of robbery:

• around a third (31%) of incidents occurred on a street/footpath (768 victims)
• a quarter (25%) of incidents occurred at a retail location (627 victims)
• over half (53%) did not involve the use of a weapon (1,310 victims)
• most (82%) were persons (2,026 victims) and 18% were organisations (457 victims)

For person victims of robbery:

• there were more than twice as many males (1,399 victims) as females (629 victims)
• almost a third (32%) of victims were aged between 10 and 17 years at the date of report (639 victims)
• most victims did not know the offender (80% or 1,618 victims)

Unlawful entry with intent increased by 4% in 2021, up by 1,550 victims to 38,909 victims.

Most unlawful entry with intent:

• involved the taking of property (60% or 23,423 victims)
• occurred at a residential location (74% or 28,847 victims)

The number of victims of motor vehicle theft increased by 6% (752 victims) in 2021, to 14,510 victims.

Most motor vehicle thefts occurred at an outbuilding or residential land (including a driveway, carport, or garage) (63% or 9,150 victims). Nearly a fifth (19%) occurred on a street or footpath (2,748 victims).

There were 112,379 victims of other theft recorded in Queensland in 2021. This was an increase of 5% (5,245 victims) from 2020.

Half (50%) of other thefts occurred at a retail location (56,353 victims). Just under a quarter (24%) of other thefts occurred at a residential location (27,269 victims).

There were 35 victims of homicide and related offences recorded in South Australia in 2021, an increase of 7 victims from the previous year.

For victims of homicide and related offences:

• two-thirds (66%) were male (23 victims)
• over three-quarters (77%) of victims knew the offender (27 victims)
• most occurred at a residential location (60% or 21 victims)
• nearly half (49%) involved the use of a weapon (17 victims)
• two-fifths (40%) were family and domestic violence (FDV) related (14 victims)

There were 18,174 victims of assault recorded in South Australia in 2021, an increase of 6% (948 victims) from the previous year.  

The victimisation rate also increased from 973 in 2020 to 1,025 victims per 100,000 persons in 2021.

Most assault victims:

• were female (54% or 9,770 victims)
• knew the offender (72% or 13,162 victims)

Most assaults:

• occurred at a residential location (58% or 10,464 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (74% or 13,395 victims)

More than a quarter (26%) of victims were aged between 25 and 34 years at the date of report (4,693 victims).

Nearly half (48%) of assault incidents were FDV related (8,788 victims). Of these, around three-quarters (74%) of victims were female (6,469 victims).

There were 1,783 victims of sexual assault recorded in South Australia in 2021, an increase of 10% (158 victims) from 2020.

The victimisation rate also increased from 2020, up from 92 to 101 victims per 100,000 persons. This was the highest victimisation rate since 2007 (107 victims per 100,000).

Most sexual assault victims:

• were female (87% or 1,555 victims)
• knew the offender (82% or 1,466 victims)

Most sexual assaults:

• occurred at a residential location (70% or 1,250 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (91% or 1,623 victims)
• were reported to police within a year of the incident (74% or 1,316 victims)

Nearly half (49%) of all sexual assault victims were aged under 18 years at the date of incident (875 victims).

Nearly two-fifths (39%) of sexual assault incidents were FDV related (689 victims). Of these, the majority of FDV related sexual assault victims were female (92% or 633 victims).

There were 530 victims of robbery recorded in South Australia in 2021, a 16% (73 victims) increase from the previous year.

More than half of robberies:

• occurred at a community location (55% or 292 victims)
• involved the use of a weapon (51% or 268 victims)

Most robbery victims (89% or 470 victims) were persons, of whom most were male (76% or 355 victims). The remaining 11% of robbery victims were organisations.

The most common age group at date of report was between 25 and 34 years (25% or 119 victims).

The number of victims of blackmail and extortion nearly doubled in South Australia from the previous year, increasing from 57 to 109 victims. This was the highest recorded number in the twenty-nine year time series.

Most victims (95% or 104 victims) were persons, of whom most:

• were male (84% or 87 victims)
• were aged between 18 and 34 years at date of report (57% or 59 victims)

The remaining 5% of robbery victims were organisations.

There were 10,717 victims of unlawful entry with intent in South Australia in 2021, an increase of 4% (383 victims) from 2020.

Most unlawful entry with intent:

• occurred at a residential location (76% or 8,108 victims)
• involved the taking of property (64% or 6,878 victims)

There were 3,412 victims of motor vehicle theft in 2021, a decrease of 3% (116 victims) from the previous year.

Half (50%) of motor vehicles were stolen from an outbuilding or residential land (including a driveway, carport, or garage) (1,688 victims).

The number of victims of other theft recorded in South Australia increased by 7% (2,704 victims) from 2020, to 41,905 victims in 2021.

Nearly half (46%) of other thefts occurred at a retail location (19,104 victims).

There were 48 victims of homicide and related offences recorded in Western Australia in 2021, a decrease of 11 victims from the previous year.

For victims of homicide and related offences:

• most were male (73% or 35 victims)
• the most common age at report was between 35 and 54 years (33% or 16 victims)
• a quarter (25%) were family and domestic violence (FDV) related (12 victims)

Almost half of the homicides:

• occurred at a residential location (44% or 21 victims)
• involved the use of a weapon (42% or 20 victims)

The number of victims of assault in Western Australia increased by 6% (1,986 victims) from the previous year to 36,177 victims in 2021. The victimisation rate also increased from 1,283 in 2020 to 1,349 victims per 100,000 persons in 2021, the highest recorded across the twenty-seven year time series.

Most assaults:

• occurred at a residential location (64% or 23,254 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (80% or 28,920 victims)
• were FDV related (63% or 22,880 victims)

For victims of assault:

• around three in five (61%) were female (21,984 victims)
• more than a quarter (28%) were aged between 25 and 34 years at the date of report (10,079 victims)

In 2021, the number of victims of sexual assault increased by 17% (516 victims) to 3,564 victims, the highest recorded in the twenty-nine year time series. The victimisation rate also increased to the highest in the time series from 114 in 2020 to 133 victims per 100,000 persons in 2021.

Between 2020 and 2021, the number of victims who reported the incident to police:

• within a year increased by 20% (471 victims) to 2,878 victims
• one year and over increased by 8% (48 victims) to 687 victims

A greater proportion of male victims (25% or 94 victims) reported the incident after one year than female victims (19% or 591 victims).

Most sexual assaults:

• occurred at a residential location (74% or 2,629 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (68% or 2,405 victims)

Over a quarter (26%) of all sexual assault incidents were FDV related (909 victims).

For victims of sexual assault:

• most were female (88% or 3,148 victims)
• a higher proportion of males (79% or 297 victims) than females (61% or 1,923 victims) were aged under 18 years at the date of incident

There were 1,191 victims of robbery in 2021, an increase of 6% (65 victims) from the previous year.

Most victims of robbery were person victims (92% or 1,090 victims), the remaining 101 victims were organisations.

For person victims of robbery:

• almost three-quarters were male (71% or 777 victims)
• the most common age group was between 10 and 17 years at the date of report (24% or 265 victims)

Almost half of all robberies:

• occurred at a community location (47% or 555 victims), most commonly a street or footpath (32% or 383 victims)
• involved the use of a weapon (45% or 533 victims)

The number of victims of unlawful entry with intent in Western Australia increased by 10% (2,043 victims) from the previous year to 22,408 victims in 2021.

Most unlawful entry with intent:

• occurred at a residential location (71% or 15,889 victims)
• involved the taking of property (65% or 14,649 victims)

There were 6,577 victims of motor vehicle theft recorded in 2021, an increase of 23% (1,239 victims) from 2020. This increase follows the lowest number of recorded victims for this offence in 2020 (5,338 victims), coinciding with the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions.

Just over three-fifths (61%) of stolen motor vehicles were taken from an outbuilding or residential land (including a driveway, carport or garage) (4,008 victims).

The number of victims of other theft recorded in 2021 increased by 11% (6,599 victims) from the previous year to 65,857 victims. This increase follows the lowest number of recorded victims for this offence in 2020 (59,258 victims), coinciding with the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions.

Other theft offences occurred most commonly at a retail location (40% or 25,999 victims).

There were 9 victims of homicide and related offences recorded in Tasmania in 2021 and all the incidents involved the use of a weapon.

The number of victims of assault increased 4% (140 victims) from the previous year to 3,559 victims in 2021.

The victimisation rate increased for the fifth consecutive year, from 633 victims per 100,000 persons in 2020 to 658 victims per 100,000 persons in 2021.

For victims of assault:

• most were female (53% or 1,869 victims)
• the most common age group at date of report was between 25 and 34 years (28% or 1,005 victims)
• a higher proportion of females knew the offender (84%) than males (54%)

Most assaults:

• occurred at a residential location (54% or 1,937 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (82% or 2,921 victims)

More than two-fifths (45%) of assaults were family and domestic violence (FDV) related (1,616 victims).

There were 470 victims of sexual assault recorded in Tasmania in 2021, an increase of 53% (163 victims) from 2020. This was the highest recorded number in the twenty-nine year time series.

The victimisation rate increased from 57 to 87 victims per 100,000 persons in 2021 from the previous year, also to the highest rate in the time series.

Most sexual assaults:

• occurred at a residential location (72% or 338 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (97% or 454 victims)

Most victims of sexual assault:

• were female (86% or 402 victims)
• knew the offender (88% or 415 victims)
• were aged under 18 years at the date of incident (60% or 280 victims)

Around two in five (39%) sexual assaults recorded in 2021 were FDV related (181 victims).

A greater proportion of female victims (64%) reported the incident to police within a year compared with male victims (48%).

There were 125 victims of robbery in Tasmania in 2021, an increase of 28 victims from the previous year.

Most robberies:

• were person victims (71% or 89 victims), the remainder (29%) were organisations
• did not involve the use of a weapon (58% or 73 victims)

For person victims of robbery:

• most were male (82% or 73 victims)
• a third knew the offender (33% or 29 victims)
• a fifth were aged between 25 and 34 years at the date of report (20% or 18 victims)

Over a third (34%) of all robberies occurred on a street or footpath (42 victims).

The number of victims of unlawful entry with intent decreased by 8% (215 victims) from 2020 to 2,496 victims in 2021. This was the lowest number of victims recorded across the twenty-nine year time series.

Most unlawful entry with intent:

• involved the taking of property (76% or 1,901 victims)
• occurred at a residential location (62% or 1,541 victims)

There were 1,207 victims of motor vehicle theft recorded in Tasmania in 2021, an increase of 22% (221 victims) from 2020. This increase follows the lowest number of recorded victims for this offence in 2020 (986 victims), coinciding with the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions.

Over half (53% or 643 victims) of all motor vehicles were stolen from an outbuilding or residential land (including a driveway, carport, or garage).

In Tasmania, there were 6,599 victims of other theft in 2021, an increase of 9% (532 victims) from 2020.

Half of other theft offences occurred at a retail location (3,275 victims).

In 2021, there were 13 victims of homicide and related offences recorded in the Northern Territory. Most of these were attempted murders (62% or 8 victims).

The majority (77%) of victims were male (10 victims).

For homicide and related offences:

• most occurred at a community location (62% or 8 victims)
• all involved the use of a weapon, with almost two-fifths (39%) involving a knife (5 victims)
• more than half (54%) were family and domestic violence (FDV) related (7 victims)

There were 9,054 victims of assault recorded in the Northern Territory in 2021, a 10% (854 victims) increase from 2020. The victimisation rate for assault was 3,682 victims per 100,000 persons in 2021, the highest in the twenty-seven year time series.

Most victims of assault:

• were female (63% or 5,720 victims)
• were aged 18 and over when they reported the incident (90% or 8,179 victims)
• knew the offender (76% or 6,880 victims)

For assaults:

• around half (49%) occurred at a community location (4,476 victims)
• more than half (59%) did not involve the use of a weapon (5,345 victims)
• almost two-thirds (63%) were FDV related (5,733 victims)

The number of recorded victims of sexual assault decreased in the Northern Territory by 4% (15 victims) to 355 victims in 2021. The victimisation rate for sexual assault also decreased from 150 to 144 victims per 100,000 persons.

For victims of sexual assault:

• most were female (89% or 317 victims)
• more than a third (38%) were aged under 18 years at the date of incident (135 victims)
• most reported the incident within a year (87% or 308 victims)
• more than half (56%) knew the offender (198 victims)

For sexual assaults:

• more than a third (36%) occurred at a community location (127 victims)
• most incidents did not involve the use of a weapon (91% or 322 victims)
• a quarter (25%) were FDV related (90 victims)

There were 223 victims of robbery recorded in the Northern Territory in 2021, an increase of 31% (53 victims) from the previous year.

For victims of robbery:

• the majority were person victims (91% or 203 victims), the remainder were organisations (9% or 20 victims)
• most were male (70% or 143 victims)
• a third (33%) were aged between 25 and 34 years when they reported the incident (66 victims)

For robberies, the majority:

• were unarmed (56% or 125 victims)
• occurred at a community location (54% or 120 victims)

The number of victims of unlawful entry with intent increased by 27% (996 victims) from the previous year to 4,745 victims in 2021. This increase returns the number of victims to similar levels recorded in 2019 (4,652 victims) prior to the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions.  

Most incidents of unlawful entry with intent did not involve the taking of property (57% or 2,719 victims).

There were 708 victims of motor vehicle theft recorded in 2021, an increase of 38% (195 victims) from the previous year. This increase returns the number of victims to similar levels recorded in 2019 (700 victims) prior to the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions.

The most common location for motor vehicle theft was an outbuilding or residential land (including a driveway, carport, or garage) (33% or 232 victims).

In 2021, police recorded 6,503 victims of other theft in the Northern Territory. This was an increase of 23% (1,214 victims) from 2020. This increase returns the number of victims to similar levels recorded in 2019 (6,285 victims) prior to the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions.

There were 12 victims of homicide and related offences in the Australian Capital Territory in 2021.

The number of victims of assault increased from the previous year, up 5% (99 victims) to 2,314 victims in 2021.

The victimisation rate also increased, from 514 to 536 victims per 100,000 persons.

For victims of assault:

• just under a quarter (24%) were aged between 25 and 34 years at the date of report (545 victims)
• more than two-fifths (42%) of the incidents were family and domestic violence (FDV) related (968 victims)
• a higher proportion of females (79%) knew the offender than males (48%)
• around half (49%) of the incidents occurred at a residential location (1,136 victims)

Most assaults (88% or 2,038 victims) did not involve the use of a weapon.

The number of victims of sexual assault in the Australian Capital Territory increased by 18% (52 victims) from 2020 to 341 victims in 2021. This was the highest number of victims recorded for this offence in the Australian Capital Territory across the twenty-nine year time series.

The victimisation rate also increased from 67 to 79 victims per 100,000 persons in 2021. This was the second-highest victimisation rate, with the highest rate recorded at 81 victims per 100,000 persons in 2007.

Most sexual assaults recorded in 2021:

• occurred at a residential location (64% or 219 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (97% or 330 victims)

For victims of sexual assault:

• the majority were female (90% or 307 victims)
• most knew the offender (72% or 246 victims)
• a third (33%) of the incidents were FDV related (113 victims)

Just under a quarter (24%) reported the incident to police a year or more after it occurred (81 victims).

There were 171 victims of robbery in the Australian Capital Territory in 2021, an increase of 19 victims from the previous year. Over half (53%) were armed robberies (90 victims), most commonly involving a knife (52 victims).

For victims of robbery:

• 91% were person victims (156 victims) and the remaining 9% were organisations (15 victims)
• the majority (70%) of person victims were male (109 victims)
• just over half (52%) of the incidents occurred on a street/footpath (89 victims)

The number of victims of unlawful entry with intent decreased by 3% (64 victims) from the previous year to 1,911 victims in 2021. This was the lowest recorded number in the Australian Capital Territory in the twenty-nine year time series.

Over half (57%) occurred at a residential location (1,081 victims).

The number of victims of motor vehicle theft in the Australian Capital Territory increased by 14% (154 victims) from 2020 to 1,276 in 2021.

Over half (56%) were stolen from a community location (719 victims).

There were 7,733 victims of other theft in 2021, an increase of 11% (741 victims) from the previous year. This increase follows the lowest recorded number for this offence in 2020 (6,992 victims), coinciding with the introduction of COVID-19 restrictions.

Just over two-fifths (42%) of other theft offences occurred at a community location (3,246 victims).

The number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victims of assault recorded in 2021 were:

• 6,379 victims in the Northern Territory
• 4,512 victims in New South Wales
• 2,600 victims in South Australia

Most Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victims of assault:

• were female (64–74%)
• knew the offender (87%–90%)
• were recorded as family and domestic violence (FDV) related incidents (70–79%)

More than a quarter of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victims of assault were aged between 25 and 34 years at the date of report (25–33%).

The most common location for assault was:

• residential in New South Wales (69%) and South Australia (62%)
• community in the Northern Territory (48%)

The number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victims of sexual assault recorded in 2021 were:

• 835 victims in New South Wales
• 812 victims in Queensland
• 130 victims in Northern Territory
• 119 victims in South Australia

Most Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victims of sexual assault:

• were female (81–91%)
• reported the offence to police within a year (68–95%)

For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victims of sexual assault:

• less than half were recorded as FDV related incidents (37–47%)
• the incidents most commonly occurred at a residential location, ranging from 42% in the Northern Territory to 73% in New South Wales

There were 105 victims of family and domestic violence (FDV) related homicide nationally in 2021, a decrease of 28% (40 victims) from the previous year. This was the lowest recorded number in the eight-year time series.

More than a quarter (28%) of all homicides were FDV related.

Murder accounted for 62% (65 victims) of FDV related homicides in 2021.

Most FDV related homicides:

• occurred at a residential location (80% or 84 victims)
• involved the use of a weapon (60% or 63 victims)

The majority of FDV related homicide victims were female (58% or 61 victims).

The most common age for female victims was between 18 and 34 years (41% or 25 victims), while for male victims it was between 35 and 54 years (27% or 12 victims).

At least two in five assaults recorded by selected state and territory police were FDV related, ranging from 42% in the Australian Capital Territory to 63% in Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

FDV related assault victims increased in all states and territories in 2021 compared with 2020, ranging from 1% in Tasmania and South Australia to 12% in the Northern Territory.

Across the selected states and territories, victims of FDV related assault were most commonly:

• female (64–78%)
• assaulted by an intimate partner (51–83%)
• aged between 25 and 34 years at the date of report (24–31%)

FDV related assaults most commonly:

• occurred at a residential location (44–88%)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (59–97%)

There were 11,367 victims of FDV related sexual assault recorded nationally in 2021, an increase of 12% (1,192 victims) from the previous year. The victimisation rate also increased from 40 to 44 victims per 100,000 persons.

Since 2020:

• the number of female victims increased (up 15% or 1,322 victims)
• the number of male victims decreased (down 9% or 133 victims)

Around two-fifths (37%) of all sexual assaults recorded in 2021 were FDV related.

Most victims of FDV related sexual assault:

• were female (89% or 10,061 victims)
• were aged under 18 years at the date of incident (66% or 7,492 victims)

Male victims were most commonly aged under 9 years at the date of incident (57%), while female victims were most commonly aged between 10 and 17 years (37%).

Most FDV related sexual assaults:

• occurred at a residential location (88% or 9,960 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (95% or 10,742 victims)
• were reported to police less than a year after the incident occurred (56% or 6,362 victims)

The offender was most commonly recorded as:

• an intimate partner in the Australian Capital Territory (63%)
• an ‘other family member’ in the remaining states and territories, ranging from 49% in Victoria and South Australia to 66% in Queensland. An ‘other family member’ can include parents, children, siblings, uncles, aunts, nephews, nieces, cousins and grandparents

There were 153 FDV related victims of kidnapping/abduction in Australia in 2021, an increase of 35% (40 victims) from 2020. Just over a third (34%) of all kidnappings/abductions recorded in 2021 were FDV related.

Most victims of FDV related kidnapping/abduction were female (84% or 129 victims).

Most FDV related kidnappings/abductions:

• occurred at a residential location (68% or 104 victims)
• did not involve the use of a weapon (73% or 111 victims)