Thieves steal from flood victims

A GOODNA flood victim was robbed of nearly $6000 on Saturday.

Goodna resident Cuong Van Tran, known as Chin, had $5900 stolen from his home on Saturday. He has been trying to rebuild the family home since January’s flood. Picture: Sarah Harvey

A GOODNA flood victim was robbed of nearly $6000 on Saturday.

The same day as a story about Cuong Van Tran, known as Chin, ran in The Queensland Times, a man allegedly stole $5900 in cash Chin had withdrawn to pay for a new kitchen.

Chin has a record of using cash for his transactions, and has come into conflict with Suncorp after the company had no record of him paying his insurance fees, which he claims to have paid in cash.

Chin claims he left the house during the day on Saturday and a group of men entered the house while his wife Nam was hanging out washing.

The next-door neighbour saw the men enter the Van Trans' house and at first thought they were volunteers.

"He came out the back and asked Nam, 'do you have people coming to help you clean?'" Chin said.

"She said no and, when she went out the front, the money was gone."

Chin said his heart sank when Nam called him to say the money had been stolen.

"They're just bloody mongrels," Chin said.

"Whoever did this, they have no brains and they have no heart."

This is the fourth time Chin says he has been robbed since moving into the house only weeks before the floods, including the theft of a present donated to his daughter for her birthday.

The Van Trans' kitchen remains half done, with Chin not having enough money to pay the builders who were due to finish work on it yesterday.

"I've been borrowing from my home loan. I don't have the money to spare," he said.

Ipswich City councillor Paul Tully said he was aware of a number of daylight robberies occurring in the Brisbane Terrace area.

"I have had reports in recent weeks of daytime thieves on the riverside at Goodna going from house to house to see what they can steal," he said.

"There needs to be extra police patrols to curb this new menace to Goodna's flood victims."

Cr Tully said he'd heard of at least one thief who had been caught by a Goodna local.

"One thief was collared by a burly householder and given on-the-spot summary justice and has not been seen again."

Despite the theft and the ongoing year of hardship, Chin said he just wanted the money back.

"Please, if they have even half and they can give it back to me, it would just help me keep going," he said.

Originally published as Thieves steal from flood victims