Sunglasses, surf wax and a saw among the possessions stolen from cars
A wealthy Gold Coast suburb has seen a spate of break-ins and thefts from cars, with one expensive designer item a particular favourite of the thieves.
Crime and Court
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VARSITY Lakes residents are being urged to keep their cars and houses locked after a spate of break-ins which have seen thieves take luxury items.
Designer sunglasses are a particular favourite of the thieves, who have also made off with engagement rings, cash and other items.
The latest incident occurred on Sunday night when Kyle Sassen had a pair of Versace sunglasses stolen from his car on Cezaire Avenue.
“My wife went to drive to the gym (the next morning) and saw all her belongings thrown out from the glovebox,” he said.
This isn’t the first time Mr Sassen’s property was hit by thieves.
“We have just had a theft out our house few months ago where an older guy wearing painting overalls had some sort of device where he opened our garage door and stole my wife’s engagement ring,” he said.
“We have heard heaps of similar situations around Varsity.”
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Several other Varsity Lakes residents have said their cars have been broken into with sunglasses a popular item, with one local saying his Ray Bans had been stolen.
Another Varsity Lakes resident, Krista Mathis, had her van stolen from in front of her house last month.
Ms Mathis said she got a call from police the day after to say the van had been found in Miami.
“They think it was local kids who drove it to a party,” she said.
“We worked out they had broken into the work ute and found the key to the van.”
Ms Mathis said there wasn’t any damage but the owner’s manual, a saw, surf wax, cash and the keys were all stolen.
“We were really surprised and shocked because it was right in front of the house and our bedroom is right there,” she said.
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But this also isn’t the first time Ms Mathis had experienced a similar incident.
“It happened to my car — the window was broken when it was parked right in front of my house and the car broken into,” she said.
“About a year ago the person next door to my sister had their car taken out of their driveway. They came into house and took the keys and took the car.
“I do still feel safe... but it does happen quite a bit surprisingly.”
Division 11 Councillor Hermann Vorster said there are simple steps residents can take to protect themselves.
“The issue has been a hot topic at neighbourhood with groups across Robina and Varsity Lakes,” he said.
“Police tell us they are aware and it seems as though much of it has been caused by vehicles left unlocked or valuables left in plain sight.
“Best defence against these thugs is to take some simple steps to protect ourselves — hiding valuables, making sure cars are locked, garaging cars where possible and report suspicious activity.”
Cr Vorster said the area is still safe.
“I think Robina and Varsity Lakes are among the safest places in the Gold Coast,” he said.
“We see zero tolerance and hyper vigilance in the community helping to combat the problem.
“We’re all the more safer for it and have gone from three CCTV cameras to over 50 in last three years.”
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