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Abstract

This study examines the crime patterns of New Zealand serial sexual assaulters in order to determine the extent to which such offenders display spatial behaviour in line with their overseas counterparts. Hypotheses concerning journey to crime, criminal range and spatial pattern were tested. Geographical information on 76 serial offenders was extracted from police files and mapped. A series of spatial analyses were conducted in order to examine the spatial mobility of the offenders. It was found that, in line with much overseas research, offenders typically did not travel very far to offend (a median of 3 km) and operated over identifiable criminal ranges. However, in contrast to much overseas research into serial spatial patterns, New Zealand offenders were characterised by transience and commuting patterns of behaviour rather than a predominant marauder style. The implications of these findings for geographic profiling are discussed.

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Spatial Characteristics of Serial Sexual Assault in New Zealand

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