Members of the Indian community in South Auckland have revealed increasing concern about safety in the region.

Latest NZ Police statistics showed that 9023 crimes were reported in the South Auckland suburbs of Takanini, Papakura, Papatoetoe, Manurewa and Manukau Central in the first eight months of the year - a 7.8 percent increase compared to the same period last year.

Manukau Central topped the list, with 2756 crimes reported, followed by Takanini (2114) and Papakura (1799).

In January, police arrested a 30-year-old man after committing five burglaries in one night on the same South Auckland street in Takanini.

In June, a business owner was seriously injured after being struck in the head with a hammer during a vicious aggravated robbery in Papatoetoe

Manu Joseph, 45, said crime in South Auckland had noticeably increased over the 10 years he had been living in the region.

"I've been in situations where the store I was shopping in got robbed," Joseph said. "It was a horrible experience."

Joseph recently relocated from Papatoetoe to a new home in Takanini, a move partly prompted by increasing crime in his former neighbourhood.

"It used to be very safe back in the day," Joseph said.

"[But] there are too many ram raids, and you feel less and less safe," he said. "I'm careful when I go to fill up petrol these days."

Joseph was sad to see many small businesses in South Auckland protected by steel cages.

His rental property in Papatoetoe was robbed in 2018, with the perpetrators cleaning out the house.

He subsequently installed cameras to monitor the property, noting that many surrounding households had done the same to protect their homes and vehicles in the driveway.

"That was the only robbery I experienced, but safety in general is now a concern for me,