ON August 1, a 15-year-old Belconnen area boy was the 300th person apprehended by Operation Toric.

About 9.30am on August 1, the boy was arrested at his home in relation to the theft of a Holden Colorado and a Lexus CT200h from a residence in Flynn, and the theft of a Volkswagen T-Cross and a Jaguar XE from a residence in Melba.

These thefts are alleged to have taken place in late July.

The boy was subsequently charged with two counts of aggravated burglary, and four counts of riding/driving a stolen motor vehicle.

In August 2022, ACT Policing established Operation Toric, targeting recidivist offenders to address an increase in motor vehicle thefts and associated dangerous driving and other crimes in the ACT.

These 300 apprehensions have resulted in more than 750 charges being laid, most commonly motor vehicle theft and burglary.

Of those apprehended, 119 of the alleged offenders were on bail, 38 were subject to good behaviour orders, six were on intensive corrections orders, and 19 were on parole.

Shockingly, a 31-year-old man and a 29-year-old woman have each been arrested four times by Operation Toric members.

Detective Acting Inspector Elizabeth Swain said Operation Toric members have been involved in some serious incidents with offenders.

“Recently, we had a member struck by a car driven by a recidivist offender at ANU,” she said.

“Like many of the offenders TORIC encounters, that driver was on bail at the time of the incident.

“We’ve also had another incident where a member was struck by a vehicle trying to flee – this offender reversed so fast the door of their vehicle was ripped off and they fled the scene with no door.

“It is only through sheer luck that these members weren’t seriously injured, or worse.

“The majority of people arrested by Operation Toric are recidivist offenders, who show a blatant disregard for laws, for safety, and for the community.

“Since Operation Toric commenced, we have seen a marked drop in motor vehicle thefts across the ACT.”