Fearful owner closes dairy after 11 robberies in 14 years

Fed up with robberies, the owner of Hikurangi's Kingsway Dairy has shut up shop and intends to sell the building. Photo / Michael Cunningham

A Whangarei dairy owner who has closed his shop and selling up after 11 robberies in 14 years says armed hold-ups won't stop until tougher penalties are given to armed robbers.

The owner of Kingsway Dairy in Hikurangi, Hemant, who prefers to be identified by his first name only, closed his business on September 25- the day his dairy was broken into.

He has now boarded the shop up and is about to put the building on the market. He said his family may have to go on a benefit if he could not find work.

With a wife and two young children to support, he has been mowing lawns with a ride-on mower he owns and has vowed never to run another business after the robberies left him fearful.

Mr Hemant worked for 16 years as a floor sweeper, sewing machinist, and grass cutter and saved enough money to open the Kingsway Dairy.

Dairy hold-ups, Mr Hemant said, would continue unless courts meted out tougher penalties irrespective of the age of offenders.

This week, police arrested a 14-year-old boy and are looking for a second offender after a knife-point robbery left the owner of Omapere Foodmart in South Hokianga traumatised.

"Nothing will happen to that boy. These people can rock up to Work and Income and get dole almost straight away but the people who are most forgotten, who nobody wants to help are the victims," Hemant said.

"Even if offenders are sent to jail, it's a fun park. What the government needs to do is to give them hard labour by getting them to work in areas like forestry. Their problem is they don't want to work while readily accepting government handouts paid for by hardworking taxpayers."

He does not know what the future holds for his family. Hemant said every time his dairy was robbed, he took out bank loans to restock as he did not have surplus money for such unexpected events.

"I live day to day."

Hemant said it was just not worth running dairies if they were frequently targeted because perpetrators got off almost scot free - if they were caught - and the insurance payout did not cover for the loss.

Police Minister Stuart Nash said he was extremely concerned about the number of aggravated robberies and the violence victims of the terrible crime were being subjected to.

He said more resources would be put into community policing, together with increasing police numbers by 1800 nationwide.

"Another area that I believe needs a greater focus is organised crime. By helping to interrupt the supply chains which are flooding our communities with methamphetamine and other drugs, we can remove some of the incentives that attracts people to these criminal activities."

He said the government was working on policies to reduce demand for drugs such as increasing drug addiction services and investment in health services.

Retail New Zealand spokesman Greg Harford said there should be infringement-type penalties for petty crimes such as shoplifting to stop people from going on to commit serious violence offences.

"As a nation through police and judicial processes, we have encouraged people to go on to commit serious crimes through lack of serious penalties," he said.

He has encouraged owners of risky businesses to take advantage of the government's financial assistance to improve security.