The command’s crime prevention officer, Sergeant Mark Scott, said the drop in reported crime over the holiday period had reflected a gradual decline in figures during the past 12 months.

“Over the whole general command statistics were down from the previous year,’’ he said.

‘‘It wasn’t as busy and generally speaking crime in the last 12 months has reduced.

“Over the whole Christmas period nothing really stood out as being any new major problems.

“There weren’t many serious assaults and domestic violence was up a bit, but no more than normal.

“Robberies were up a bit from last year, with theft from retail and in general.’’

Sergeant Scott said the rise in reported robberies could be attributed to workshops between police and retailers on how to better identify robbers and to know what to look for.

There were no fatal car accidents in the Lake Illawarra Local Area Command, and Mr Scott said eight to ten extra police officers were on the roads conducting traffic duties.

“PCA’s (Prescribed Concentration of Alcohol) were down from last year,” he said.

“Most offence were speeding.

“Traffic operations were fairly successful in dealing with the influx of cars over the Christmas period but figures weren’t worse than other years. 

“I think because Gerringong traffic has eased up a bit certainly helped. 

‘‘People have more structure and flow so drivers aren’t getting frustrated.”