8% increase in crimes against children and 28% rise in sexual offences last month – COMPOL

Police have recorded an 8 percent increase in crimes against children and a 28 percent rise in sexual offences last month.

This was revealed by the Commissioner of Police, Rusiate Tudravu, who says that of the 115 reports received, 53 percent were sexual offences, 25 percent related to assault, and 22 percent were linked to other offences.

He adds that 24 percent of the cases occurred in a domestic setting and were committed by family members or relatives.

Tudravu also noted a 28 percent increase in the number of sexual offences.

He says of the 102 cases recorded, 30 were sexual assaults, 21 were rape, 16 were indecent assault, with the remainder classified as other offences.

He adds that a matter of concern is that 60 percent of the victims were under the age of 21.

The Police Commissioner further says that there was an overall 8 percent decrease in crime and a 17 percent reduction in serious offences last month when compared to the same period last year.

He says crimes against women also saw a decrease of 2 percent.

Tudravu highlighted a 40 percent decrease in the number of drug-related cases, signalling some success under Operation Sasamaki, which aims to disrupt the drug supply chain.

He says the majority of drug cases involved the unlawful possession of illicit drugs, followed by unlawful cultivation. He says of the 89 cases recorded last month, 74 were related to unlawful possession, while 15 involved unlawful cultivation.

He says 82 cases were related to marijuana, with the remaining 7 linked to methamphetamine.

There was also a 27 percent decrease in burglary cases.

Tudravu says of the 145 reported, 75 percent occurred at residential properties.

Tudravu credited community policing for raising awareness around property and personal security, saying that they will also be pursuing the receivers of stolen goods.

He says the most prevalent crimes for June were theft and assault causing actual bodily harm.

He adds that one theft case involved 107 counts, in which a 22-year-old cashier allegedly stole more than $14,000 from a supermarket - the incident occurred in 2024 but was reported in June 2025.

He also says that no police officers were charged with criminal offences last month, however, there were 36 cases where officers were victims of crimes such as serious assault, resisting arrest, or obstructing a police officer in the execution of their duty.

The Police Commissioner emphasised that the figures published monthly are based on official reports received and may not necessarily reflect the actual situation on the ground.

He acknowledged that while there may be unreported crimes, the police have nothing to gain from manipulating the statistics.

He asked the public for more support, saying he understands some people may still doubt the drop in crime, however the Police Force is committed to doing their best and wants to regain people’s trust.