Cigarettes were the target of two ram raids in the Tūrangi/Tongariro area over the last fortnight. Photo / 123RF
Cigarettes were the target of two ram raids in the Tūrangi/Tongariro area over the last fortnight. Photo / 123RF
Kia ora koutou. Since I last did a police report a fortnight ago, we have had a mini crime wave in our area.
These crimes are mainly being caused by a group of local youths causing havoc. We believe they are linked to 18 burglaries, five vehicle thefts, vehicles broken into and two ram raids on local shops, using stolen vehicles.
However, some members of the community are unfortunately enabling and supporting this group's behaviour by buying stolen goods from them.
We have heard reports that the youths and their parents are selling cigarettes and other stolen goods such as tools on Facebook.
If you are buying stolen goods, you are encouraging and rewarding crime. It is also a crime to receive stolen property, if you are reckless about how something was obtained. Remember, if a deal's too good, then there's a good chance that it's stolen property.
The trouble began several weeks ago when a young person from Auckland came to stay in Tūrangi, teaching others how to break into cars and setting off a crime wave. Before that, these youths were known to us but it was mostly for minor matters.
The Auckland lad has since been detained in custody but three local youths, with one as young as 13, are still in the community and are being dealt with through the Youth Aid process.
We also executed three search warrants last Thursday and inquiries are ongoing but we found cannabis at two addresses and believe that the parents are enabling the use of cannabis and selling stolen goods.
Constable Jeremy Poynter, Tūrangi Police. Photo / File
I want to reassure the community that we are out there, we are actively targeting these offenders but we also need the parents and other whānau to support us with this, as well as the community, by not purchasing or selling stolen goods.
Remember also the basic rules to avoid becoming a target: keep your vehicle locked when not in use, with valuables removed, keep your home and sheds locked. Call 111 immediately if you see anything suspicious or anyone out of place. Some neighbourhoods have Viber phone trees which allow them to alert everybody quickly. If you have a Neighbourhood Support group in your area, join it, or contact us for information on setting one up.
Be aware that we also have another group of youths aged around 12 active in town at the moment, asking people if they can do their lawns and odd jobs.
They're doing this in school hours and kids aged up to 16 should be in school, so please do not enable them by giving them work to do or the opportunity to check out your place for desirable items.
Stay safe, look after each other and our community. Ngā mihi, Jeremy
