By JESSE GRAHAM
YARRA Glen community members met to discuss safety from crime last week, following a “spate” of incidents in the Eildon electorate.
On Thursday 3 December, Eildon MP Cindy McLeish and Eastern Victoria MLC and Shadow Police Minister Edward O’Donohue met with Yarra Glen Police Sergeant Richard Coulson, Chamber of Commerce president Alex Lagerwey and representatives of United Petroleum at the United Service Station on Bell Street.
The service station was the site of a ram-raid on 29 September, where the driver of a Nissan Patrol stole an ATM that was bolted into the floor.
Two months after the incident, the front of the service station is still covered with metal, and Ms McLeish said she was taking Mr O’Donohue around her electorate to talk crime after a “spate” of incidents.
“We started out in Bonnie Doon this morning, because there has been a lot of crime throughout my electorate,” she said.
“We’ve had the (Yarra Glen and District) Men’s Shed done a couple of times, and the garden supplies, so I wanted Edward to talk to people who are impacted.
“To understand the stories from the businesses’ point-of-view and from the community safety point-of-view, I think, is really important.”
The meeting came just hours after another ram-raid, this time at the Yarra Glen Tractor and Mower Centre in Bell Street overnight on Wednesday, where a trailer and two ride-on mowers worth $12,000 were stolen.
Sgt Coulson said there had been an increase in ram-raid crimes “late at night” in the five years since he started working in the town.
Mr O’Donohue said the discussions in the Eildon electorate would help to shape the Liberal Party’s policies, leading up to the next State Election.
“I want to develop good policy for the future that helps police, helps the community to solve crime issues at a local level and I’ve had some really good feedback,” he said.
One of these potential policies, he said, was making registration plates unable to be unscrewed – anti-theft screws are currently available at hardware stores and some police stations, but are not mandatory.
“We’ll develop those policies and, in the interim, we’ll also continue to advocate for better resourcing of Victoria Police, to deal with the myriad issues and challenges that are out there.”
Mr Lagerwey said that, following a meeting with Casey MP Tony Smith late last month, the Yarra Glen chamber would consider applying for federal funding for CCTV cameras in town.
