Hundreds arrested in domestic violence crackdown
More than 550 people in NSW have been arrested in a state-wide crackdown on domestic and family violence.
Operation Amarok VI ran from last Wednesday to Saturday, and in that time police arrested 554 people and made a total of 1070 charges.
Of those arrests, 226 were wanted by police for alleged serious domestic violence offences, according to a NSW police spokesman.
"Anyone who commits this heinous crime can expect a knock at their door," Police Minister Yasmin Catley said.
"Operation Amarok is just one part of the police response. Last year, almost 150,000 calls for assistance were made to the NSWPF for domestic violence-related matters.
"This shows the severity of the situation, the huge amount of police time and resources that go into addressing this epidemic and how important it is for prevention, early intervention and crisis support services to work together."
Some of most significant arrests include a a 53-year-old man who allegedly threatened a woman with an imitation gun in Kempsey.
Officers searched the home and seized the weapon and some cannabis.
A 23-year-old woman was also arrested in the state's west after allegedly stabbing a relative around 2:30 am on May 17.
The older relative received multiple stab wounds to the abdomen, head, and back and was taken to a local hospital where police were called.
She was later flown to the Royal Adelaide Hospital in a critical condition.
The 23-year-old was charged with wound person intend cause grievous bodily harm and was refused bail to appear in Dubbo Local Court on May 18.
NSW Police Executive Sponsor for Domestic and Family Violence, Deputy Commissioner Peter Thurtell said that the operation allowed police to conduct a targeted blitz of those who have been flagged as the worst domestic violence offenders.
“We demonstrated last week that we will target and arrest the offenders no matter where they are located. We saw significant arrest numbers in our regional communities, and we also saw arrests for offences that occurred allegedly while the offender was in jail," he said.
"These Amarok VI results send a powerful message to offenders, and the community at large, that we do not tolerate domestic and family violence in any form, and our efforts will continue."
Images: NSW Police