Mai Thai owners say rough sleepers broke into the restaurant premises. Photo / File.
Mai Thai owners say rough sleepers broke into the restaurant premises. Photo / File.
Central city business owners are worried that rough sleepers may be breaking into restaurants and using them as accommodation for lockdown.
Backpackers saw people inside Mai Thai Restaurant on three different nights and believed they were rough sleepers who had been living there, said Crime Prevention Group spokesman Sunny Kaushal.
Mai Thai owner arrived to find the restaurant in a filthy state, with everything gone from the bar and food freezer. Photo / File.
Kaushal, who owns the Shakespeare Tavern on Albert St, believed restaurants are being targeted but there was no way for business owners to find out until the lockdown is over.
"First it was thefts and burglaries, now the homeless people have intruded into closed businesses during the Covid-19 lockdown," Kaushal said.
"Some of them have forced entry into Mai Thai and lived there for at least two to three nights."
Sunny Kaushal said it was triple whammy for central city businesses already reeling from losses due to the CRL construction and Covid-19 outbreak. Photo / File.
He said it was difficult to say how many businesses have been broken into at this stage because business owners were not able to check on their shops because of the lockdown.
Kaushal said this was a "triple whammy" to central city businesses which were already reeling from losses due to the City Rail Link construction works and the effects of the coronavirus outbreak.
Jugdish Naran, co-owner of Roma Blooms which is located below Mai Thai Restaurant, said he got a call from a backpacker who had been noticing suspicious movements in the restaurant for a few nights.
Jugdish Naran, co-owner of Roma Blooms Florist, was notified by a backpacker who noticed suspicious activity at Mai Thai Restaurant above his shop. Photo / File.
"I immediately informed Sunny about it, but it's really gotten me worried about the other businesses in the city," he said.
"I believe restaurants are especially targetted because they've got booze and perhaps a freezer full of food."
When Mai Thai owner Bow Manoonpong got to the restaurant, she found it in a filthy state with food scraps on the floor, soiled toilets, and the freezer opened.
"They took every single bottle of beer, wine and spirit. Cleaned up the whole cool room," Manoonpong said.
"It's a disaster."
Mai Thai owners say rough sleepers broke into the restaurant premises. Photo / File.
Manoonpong said she had initially brushed it off as birds when her alarm monitoring company informed her three times that the alarm had gone off.
Police are asking anyone who sees any suspicious behaviour or activity to contact police immediately on 111.
Inspector Gary Davey, Auckland Central Area Commander said police were not immediately aware of receiving any reports in relation to people "rough sleeping" in businesses during the alert level 4 period.
"Police received a report of a burglary incident at a restaurant premise on Victoria St West on April 3," he said.
"Police arrived at the site within minutes and spoke with the owner, however the premise was unoccupied and no offenders were located."
He said guidelines were clear under the alert level 4 restrictions – that all non-essential businesses are required to close over this period and travel is only allowed for the purpose of getting essential supplies, or for workers in essential services to travel to and from their place of work.
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"During this period, police have increased our presence on the streets and we have been conducting regular patrols through commercial areas such as the Auckland CBD to look out for any suspicious behaviour," Davey said.
"Police have also been working with our partner agencies to ensure our vulnerable communities are being supported at this time, including accommodation needs."
Davey said it was up to business owners to ensure they had appropriate security measures already in place during the lockdown, such as alarms and secure locks.
"If anyone has concerns about the security of their premise or wants further advice they can contact police by phoning 105," he added.
