Residents should do street patrols in a bid to stop “socially unacceptable degenerates” from committing crime, the deputy mayor of a town on the Queensland and New South Wales border has said.
Councillor Rob Mackenzie was fuming when he took to Facebook to post a “call to arms” in the Goondiwindi Angel Alert group.
“This is a call to ARMS … without the weapons,” he wrote in the post.
“I’m asking anyone on this group page to rally together and do a shift driving around … we will not be held to ransom by these scumbag lowlifes … let’s help the police catch these marauding band of socially unacceptable degenerates and take back our town”.
Mr Mackenzie is part a 6000-strong community claiming to be in the grip of a youth crime crisis.
He told The Courter Mail 10 homes and three cars were broken into one night and many feared the problem was only getting worse.
“People have video footage of their homes – and there’s a lot of it,” Mr Mackenzie said.
“You can’t see their faces but you can see some of them are 10 or 12 years of age, walking around with socks on their hands to turn handles on doors on houses to steal whatever they can get their hands on.
“Ninety per cent of the time, (the children are) getting car keys and joy-riding before burning the car and driving it into the river. Police will arrest them … then there won’t be anything for a week or fortnight. They’ll go to court, the magistrates given them a slap over the wrist and they’re back in the community.”
The young crooks allegedly committing the offences put videos of their offending on social media and get notoriety from doing it, Mr Mackenzie claimed.
Women in Goondiwindi have been key targets in recent weeks, with Queensland Police confirming a 20-year-old woman was allegedly assaulted by three teenagers who stole her car.
A 13-year-old boy was charged with unlawful use of a motor vehicle and warrants for the arrest of the other children have been issued.
On March 26 police said four teenagers were alleged to have robbed and threatened a woman with “what appeared to be a gun” while she walked along a street.
Police believe many of the children committing crimes are out-of-towners coming to Goondiwindi to wreak havoc.
“The QPS recently commenced a joint operation with the NSW Police Force with local inquiries conducted south of the border in Boggabilla and Toomelah in relation to a number of serious offences,” a police spokeswoman said.
Goondiwindi Regional Council has repeatedly called on the Queensland Government to introduce tougher sentences for juvenile criminals and a 24-hour police station in the town.
In response to the calls, a 24-hour police presence was introduced last year.
Queensland’s Youth Justice Minister Leanne Linard said Queensland already had the toughest youth bail laws in Australia.
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