Their fingers are on our criminals- Senior Constable Cameron Maguire from the Casey-Cardinia C

THE Casey-Cardinia Crime Desk is one of the busiest in Victoria with 11,303 crimes investigated in 12 months.
Thefts from cars are still causing headaches for local police with 2291 incidences reported between March 2008 and the end of February 2009.
Criminal damage was the second most reported crime (2189) in the region.
Victoria Police began establishing its crime desk network across the state in 2003 to better collect crime scene evidence and analyse crime trends.
Last year, crime desk officers for Casey-Cardinia investigated 11303 crimes, the third highest in the state.
Melbourne was the busiest (13,495) followed by Brimbank (12,125).
Crime desk officers use forensic and intelligence based investigative techniques at each job they attend.
The new system, rolled out from 2003, has reduced delays in dealing with criminal reports.
Victoria Police Commander Terry Purton said the most recent results showed improvements on previous years.
“Crime desks remove the load on general patrols, and the knowledge gained from officers’ specialist training ensures they leave no stone unturned in the gathering of evidence at crime scenes,” he said.
The Casey-Cardinia Crime Desk has produced some remarkable results. In March 2008, Casey-Cardinia crime scene officers viewed CCTV footage to assess what a suspect had touched in a Hampton Park bottle shop.
They identified bottles the suspect had touched and replaced prior to the theft and were able to lift fingerprints leading to an arrest.
Despite such work, Cmdr Purton said police could not drive down crime without the help of the community.
“Our officers work incredibly hard to produce outstanding leads, but the community can always do more to prevent crime, such as locking doors and windows, and removing valuables from their parked cars,” he said.