The Northern Territory's opposition says an operation to crack down on property crime in Alice Springs is "failing", after multiple violent home invasions in the town this week.
Operation Drina was launched in November amid an escalating crime wave in the Central Australian town, including several instances where members of the public were urged to stay away from the central business district (CBD) to avoid stolen vehicles being driven dangerously in the area.
At the time, Northern Territory police said 45 officers would be surged into Alice Springs as part of the operation, but that number has since fallen to just 30 members.
This week, territory police this week released statements outlining a number of situations in Alice Springs, including seven units being broken into in the suburb of Gillen, and another incident in which two people were assaulted in their homes by alleged thieves brandishing weapons.
Country Liberal politician Bill Yan — whose seat of Namijira takes in parts of Alice Springs — said the massive police operation was failing.
"People are not feeling safe in their homes. They are not feeling safe going about their day-to-day business, and they’re not feeling safe in their workplaces," he said.
He urged the Police Minister Kate Worden to explain whether the number of officers in Alice Springs had been reduced.
"We’ve seen a surge in police into our community and it had an immediate effect on the crime issues our community was facing. The visibility of police in the community certainly had an impact as well," he said.
"But now, where are they?"
Officer numbers down on initial surge
Speaking to ABC Radio on Monday, Acting Senior Sergeant Michael Wyatt said police in Alice Springs had struggled to staff patrols over the new year's weekend because officers deployed with Operation Drina were on break.
"They've had a significant impact, I think, in deterring antisocial behaviour and been able to respond quickly to matters in the CBD and the shopping centres," he said.
"But, unfortunately, like anything, we can't have the resources there all the time and [Sunday] night was one of those times where we had a lowering of the resources and we saw a change in behaviour."
In a statement, Northern Territory Police Force Commander Matthew Hollamby said staffing for Operation Drina "remained fluid".
"Operation Drina saw an initial surge of 45 members down in Alice Springs, to combat crime and Antisocial behaviour, in November 2022," Commander Hollamby said.
"As of right now, [more than] 30 members make up Drina, and their expertise has greatly assisted in Alice Springs police operations during a period where we traditionally see a spike in property crime."
Mr Yan said Operation Drina initially resulted in a noticeable improvement on the streets of Alice Springs, in part, due to frequent and prominent patrols of the town's CBD.
However, he accused the government of neglecting to resource the operation properly in the weeks since.
"Since those first two to three weeks, we've seen a slow and steady decline in those visual policing numbers and that visual policing effort."
In a statement, Ms Worden said operational decisions — such as the deployment of resources — were matters for Police Commissioner Jamie Chalker.
However, she acknowledged high-visibility policing was "effective in deterring antisocial behaviour and crime".
"We know these are complex issues that we can’t just arrest our way out of," she said.
"We continue to invest heavily in the root causes of crime, including improving housing and access to services in the bush."
Police busy with violent home invasions, vehicle thefts
Amid growing pressure to take action, the Northern Territory government announced a trial to remove children picked up by police late at night in Alice Springs, and remove them from their families for child protection assessments.
The policy, announced in November, was brought in after five children aged between 11 and 13 were arrested for allegedly driving three stolen vehicles dangerously through town.
However, weeks after the policy came into force, police in Alice Springs are still being kept busy.
Over the past week, police issued a number of statements calling for information on aggravated unlawful entries and stolen vehicles.
On Monday, seven units in the same complex in Gillen were broken into, with police later recovering a stolen vehicle taken from the address.
Then, on Tuesday morning, police alleged two men entered two properties in Alice Springs, where one of the residents was allegedly assaulted.
On Tuesday night, residents in two households were allegedly threatened with "edged weapons", with the intruders allegedly fleeing both scenes in the residents' vehicles. Police were unable to confirm whether the two events were linked.
