A social media user speculated that nothing of value was stolen and the damage to fix the front of the store was going to outweigh the cost of the items stolen.
Northland retail businesses have been turning to security guards for protection in the wake of recent ram-raids, robberies and burglaries, the Northern Advocate reported in September.
In August, a 16-year-old was charged with a raft of offences after an alleged crime spree in the Bay of Islands — including the bungled ram-raid of a Waipapa liquor store.
In this year’s Budget, the Government announced a $6 million package to help address ram-raids and fund security measures for shops, focusing on solutions such as bollards and alarms.
Anyone that witnessed the incident is encouraged to call police or file a report on 105 quoting file number 221126/2607.
Other ram-raids in Northland this year include those at Johnson’s Jewellers in Kamo, Torpedo 7 in Okara, Kathmandu in the CBD, The Parua Bay Four Square, Patel’s Foodmarket on Kamo Rd, the Kensington Liquorland, the Tutukaka General Store, and OPSM in the middle of town have all been targeted.
In July, 10 people, most with Crips gang associations, have been arrested on 32 charges, including burglary, unlawful possession of ammunition and demanding with intent to rob. Another five people were referred to Youth Aid in relation to commercial burglaries and dishonesty-related offences.
Nationally, there has been a more than 500 per cent increase in the number of ram raids in the first six months of 2022, compared to the same period in 2018.
