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FLOODING CHAOS EYE OF THE STORM Workers shut down Main Street PAGES 4-5 Wednesday, 22 June 2016
A thrill-seeker’s journey PAGES 26-27
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Our hot wheels By ALANA MITCHELSON ARSON has surged in Cardinia Shire in the past 12 months, with authorities drawing the link to a rise in stolen cars being set alight. New crime figures have revealed a 78 per cent increase in the number of arson-related incidents – just short of 100 offences this year – with theft up almost 40 per cent. Cardinia CFA operations officer Jim Dore said the Pakenham Fire Brigade had already responded to 20 car fires this year. “We’re not getting a lot of structured wildfires so I would say that most of the increase in arson would be stolen cars being burnt,“ Mr Dore said. “We’ve had a lot of car fires lately. We’ve had four car fires, just stolen and dumped, in the last week. “Offenders, especially youths, are now stealing registered cars, taking them for a joy ride, doing burnouts and the like, and to get the final thrill, they burn the car.“ Senior Sergeant Nathan Prowd was surprised that the statistics had not showed a greater hike in property damage, which rose by 22 per cent. He said a small percentage of people were responsible for a
large percentage of the crime. “The vast majority of Cardinia are law-abiding citizens looking for a safe environment to raise their kids,“ Sen Sgt Prowd said. “Often we see the same offenders committing similar kinds of crimes. We target these – what we call recidivist – offenders and with youth crime, we have the opportunity to convene in their offending cycle and get them the help they need. “We can help identify what it is that’s driving the crime and then link them to agencies where they can get further support with whatever it may be that they’re struggling with: gambling, lack of employment, alcohol, education, drugs or mental health.“ Children aged between 10 and 14 were among the culprits committing property and deception offences, with more than a 30 per cent jump in property damage and burglary offences across this age bracket. Sen Sgt Prowd attributed the 65 per cent jump in assaults committed by teenagers to an increase in reports of family violence incidents. “Realistically, there are not a large number of street assaults,“ he said.
Love in lip-lock IS IT possible to find true love with just one kiss? For Upper Beaconsfield’s Chelsea Conn, the answer is a definite ‘yes’. The 24-year-old Cold Rock Lakeside manager found her partner through the Channel Seven reality television show Kiss, Bang, Love – which has received a mixed reaction from viewers. Chelsea’s not complaining though. Her experience had a happy ending. 155810 Read all about Chelsea’s journey on page 9. Picture: STEWART CHAMBERS
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Pakenham Fire Brigade has already responded to 20 car fires this year.
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