Romsey’s Thrifty-Link Hardware has had five break-ins in eight months and owner Nick Waldhauser has reached breaking point, desperately calling for more police resources.
Last week offenders caused business losses of $40,000 including damage and stolen goods.
“When this has happened five times, how long will it take until we’re no longer here as a business… because we can’t sustain this. It really cuts you up,” he said.
Mr Waldhauser spent $25,000 on security upgrades including cameras, smoke machines and strengthening entries. He has even taken to sleeping at the business premise to deter future break-ins.
“I don’t blame Victoria Police, they do a fantastic job, but they don’t have the resources required. Something needs to change,” he said.
This comes on top of news that there are no plans to make Gisborne Police Station 24 hours despite ongoing community campaigns.
That campaigning took a further leap when just weeks ago a man tried and failed to turn himself in to the Gisborne Police Station following the death of a man in the town due to the lack of resources.
Macedon MP Mary-Anne Thomas said she’d listened to community concerns over staffing levels at station and had raised these issues with the Local Area Commander, as well as the Police Minister Lisa Neville.
“As a result, a meeting for concerned community members was held with Inspector Chris Large in February and I’ll continue to work with relevant parties to ensure our community has the police resources we need,” she said.
“The Macedon Ranges continues to be one of the safest places to live in Victoria. There’s still more work to do – we want to drive the crime rate in the Macedon Ranges down as low as possible.”
Sergeant Megan Stefanec said Victoria Police constantly reviewed police numbers, levels of offending and peak times when police were required in order to keep the community safe.
“Police station opening hours are determined by local area management and are based on local needs,” she said. “There are also considerations and risk assessments put in place regarding police member safety.
“Local police are confident they are providing an effective policing response to the community, supported by specialist units that work across the wider Macedon Ranges Police Service Area.”
