WAGGA residents have been relieved of an arson epidemic which last year saw a car stolen and burnt to the ground almost every day.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Police have reported a plummet of approximately two-thirds in local car theft and arson since June 2015, in a crackdown heavily attributed to Operation Assure.
But Detective Inspector Darren Cloake on Tuesday told The Daily Advertiser police will again shift their resources towards motor vehicle crime after a recent spike.
“Certainly over the last week there's been a big influx of new offenders,” he said.
“We basically put a stop to that type of behaviour; we had 30 less break-in and steal offences from motor vehicles per month.
“Now we’ve had a sudden spike in this type of criminal behaviour and we’re looking to reassign some of our current resources because it needs to be addressed.”
Stolen vehicles in February, March and April 2016 combined still totalled significantly less than those October 2015 alone.
It comes as a Lake Albert woman became the latest victim in the spate of arson attacks after her near-brand new car was reduced to a smouldering wreck on Sunday night.
Her Subaru, which was decked with anti-theft features and parked in a “safe part of town”, showed the desperate measures criminals are still willing to take.
And the theft was only one of eight motor vehicle crimes in the past weekend alone.
Jon Thompson, mechanic and operator at Wagga’s Ultratune repair centre, said residents can be extra cautious by installing a GPS tracker into their vehicle.
“They are pretty cheap. For just a couple hundred dollars they can be installed into the car and used to track its every movement,” Mr Thompson said.
He added the only real advantage new cars have over their older counterparts is chip-activated ignitions.
“Late model cars can't be hot-wired or started without (keys), because they have a chip in the key that the car needs to detect before it starts,” he said.
“But that doesn’t make a difference if you leave the keys out or someone breaks into the home, then there’s not much you can do.”
Inspector Cloake stressed the urgency for community vigilance.
“Past experiences have shown we need assistance from the public to keep it controlled.”
Anyone with information should Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.