‘We have guns and baseball bats’: Vigilantes say they will take the law into their hands to stop violent crime after ‘thieves rammed a stolen car into a home to steal a Lexus and Mercedes’
- Benowa Waters locals have started a neighbourhood watch to stop petty crime
- Two luxury cars were allegedly stolen out of a home on Sunday morning
- Locals are fundraising to employ security to run patrols in the neighbourhood
Vigilante homeowners are banding together to end violent crime in their neighbourhood, claiming police aren’t doing enough to keep them safe.
Residents at Benowa Waters on Queensland’s Gold Coast have launched their own neighbourhood watch program after a string of petty crimes in the area.
A group was captured on CCTV at about 6.30am on Sunday jumping the fence into a property in the once-quiet suburb in the city’s west.
They allegedly broke into the home and stole car keys, a handbag and $1,000 in cash before ramming a stolen Kia through the front gate to make their getaway with a Lexus and Mercedes Benz taken from the property.
A group was captured on CCTV at about 6.30am on Sunday jumping the fence into a property in Benowa Waters
The homeowner heard the ruckus and ran out to stop them, grabbing at the passenger door of the Lexus as the thieving drivers sped away.
The group also stole a Kia four-wheel-drive from a few streets away earlier that evening, police allege.
Locals are fed up with criminal activity and have pledged to take the law into their own hands to keep the community safe.
‘If something doesn’t happen quickly someone is going to get killed and it will either be a resident or criminal,’ resident Critton Astras told Gold Coast Bulletin.
‘We have baseball bats and I know some residents with guns.’
The 53-year-old said locals are being forced to defend their families on a daily basis as criminals run rampant through the streets.
Crime levels have increased so rapidly in recent months that locals have started a fundraiser to employ security guards to run nightly patrols in the area.
They have also raised $8,000 to install CCTV cameras throughout the neighbourhood.
The group allegedly broke into the home and stole car keys, a handbag and $1,000 in cash before ramming a stolen Kia through the front gate to make their getaway with a Lexus and Mercedes Benz taken from the property
Local resident Critton Astras said the neighbourhood watch committee is fed up and were ready to take matters into their own hands
Surfers Paradise MP John-Paul Langbroek said the Gold Coast needed more police resources as many officers are stationed at border crossing points due to coronavirus travel restrictions.
‘I don’t know if there is lack of police resources in the suburbs due to border duties but I have very frustrated members in my constituent,’ he said.
A Queensland police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia two juvenile females and an 18-year-old male were arrested after the cars were allegedly stolen.
One of the females was charged with two counts of unlawful use of motor vehicle, wilful damage and enter a premise and commit an indictable offence, while the other was charged with one count of unlawful use of motor vehicle.
The male was charged with burglary, committing an indictable offence, unlawful use of a motor vehicle, unlicensed driving and receiving tainted property and will appear in Southport Magistrates Court on Monday.
The Lexus and Mercedes Benz have both been located.
Three arrests were made after the cars were allegedly stolen, with both the Mercedes Benz and Lexus found by police