There has been a sharp increase in the number of victims of sexual assault in Dunedin. According to police data, there were 63 victimisations relating to sexual assault in 2019. Police were also taking the default position that reports should be recorded as an offence and then passed to specialists in the police sexual assault teams to deal with. Police had also been bracing for a possible 30% increase in sexual assault reports following last year’s lockdown but while there was an increase, it was not to the predicted level, he said. Otepoti Collective Against Sexual Abuse (OCASA) also noticed an increase in referrals to its Survivor Support services in 2020.

Source: Otago Daily Times January 05, 2021 15:33 UTC