Wyndham police have continued to apply the heat to high-risk drivers in the area, with more than 30 offenders charged as part of a dedicated operation over the weekend.
Police intelligence indicates over the last 12 months there has been an increase in motorbike riders and young male drivers driving at dangerously high speeds and attempting to evade police in the local area.
In response to this issue, local police developed Operation Shows earlier this year, which sees uniform police combining with the Highway Patrol, Wyndham Crime Investigation Unit, Divisional Response Unit, Dog Squad and Air Wing to apprehend offenders and protect road safety.
The operation involves Victoria Police's eyes in the sky scouring the area to detect potential risky drivers, with units on the ground responding and intercepting drivers. The Dog Squad are also available in the area to search for any offenders who attempt to flee.
The operation, which has run a total of nine times this year, had led to:
• 282 offenders processed
• 451 assorted crime or traffic offences
• 63 vehicles impounded
The majority of those arrested are for offences including driving stolen vehicles, drug and drink driving, unlicenced driving and evading police.
Last weekend alone, 34 offenders were charged, 10 vehicles were impounded, and 23 penalty notices were issued.
Notable incidents from the latest iteration of the operation, which ran across Friday evening into the early hours of Saturday morning, included:
• At 8.20pm on Friday 25 November, police detected a 2008 Suzuki GSX750 travelling at approximately 180 km/h on the Princes Freeway near Laverton North. The rider, a suspended 31-year-old male, was followed to his home in Altona Meadows and was subsequently charged with excessive speeding, drive in a manner dangerous, riding while suspended, riding an unregistered motorbike, and displaying false plates. His bike was impounded and will be charged on summons.
• At 1.20am on Saturday 26 November, police detected a 2012 Aprilia RSV4 travelling at approximately 200 km/h along the Princes Highway, near Werribee. The 19-year-old male and his pillion passenger were followed to his home address in Werribee, and he was subsequently charged with conduct endangering life, excessive speeding, riding an unregistered motorbike, and riding while suspended. His bike was impounded and will be charged on summons.
• A stolen Audi bearing false plates was observed by police in Hoppers Crossing. The offenders were arrested after exiting the vehicle, which had been stolen in an aggravated burglary in Lyndhurst on 20 September. Two 17-year-old males from Hoppers Crossing were arrested and charged with theft of motor vehicle, drug offences, weapons offences, and committing an indictable offence while on bail. Both boys were bailed to appear before a children's court at a later date.
In addition to Operation Shows, Wyndham's Highway Patrol Unit regularly patrol the streets and target driver behaviour, including impaired driving, speed, fatigue, distraction offences and seatbelt compliance.
Quotes attributable to Werribee Senior Sergeant Peter West:
"There are often no second chances on the roads - ten seconds on the accelerator can very easily lead to a lifetime of misery for countless numbers of families and friends.
"Due to the immense success of the operation, we will look to increase its prevalence even further in the new year, ensuring dangerous road users have absolutely nowhere to hide.
"Whenever a driver fails to stop or pull over, they're making a conscious decision to continue on and ignore the direction of police.
"If you choose to put the lives of other road users at risk by speeding, driving under the influence or driving unlicensed, it will only be a matter of time until we catch up with you."
