Goondiwindi property offences climb again after cooling off period

After the appointment of a cross border commissioner and more than a month of cooling off, property and vehicle offences appear to be growing in southern Queensland. But, police are on their tail.

After months of calm along the NSW-Queensland border, the southern region has seen a slight uptick in the number of property and vehicle offences.

More than a month after Cross Border Commissioner Ian Leavers took up the helm of the new position, it seemed the number of offences that plagued Goondiwindi and surrounds were cooling off.

Overnight on October 16, a number of people allegedly entered a rural property to the east of Goondiwindi and allegedly stole a vehicle and quad bike.

The vehicle and quad bike were located in NSW by Texas police, local police said.

A resident captured two would-be offenders on home security attempting to enter a east Goondiwindi home in July. (Photo: File)

The man was handed to NSW police, who charged him with a number of offences. Police are issuing warrants so they can be extradited back to Queensland.

While the matters would hardly be considered a ‘crime wave’ like the one seen earlier in the year, it is concerning after a relatively quiet policing period across Queensland.

The news comes after multiple incidents across the inland border region were reported in the past week.

Two vehicles, believed stolen from NSW at an earlier time, where found this week with one of the vehicles allegedly found pushed into the Macintyre River.

Another two vehicles were stolen from near Goondiwindi, with one recovered and the other found burnt out on Wednesday morning at Boggabilla across the border.

A Queensland Police Service spokesman said police are investigating an armed robbery in Goondiwindi which occurred in the early hours of Wednesday and is in connection with two stolen vehicles.

The quiet border town of Boggabilla has once again been used as a dumping ground for a number of alleged stolen vehicles, who were found engulfed in fire on Wednesday. Photo: Facebook

It’s understood about 1.30am a Porsche Cayenne, which was towing a Porsche GTS 923, was parked at a service station on the Cunningham Highway when the driver was allegedly assaulted and threatened by two unknown men.

The QPS spokesman said the driver sustained minor injuries and was taken to Goondiwindi Hospital by police.

It was only a matter of hours later when NSW police located the Porsche Cayenne burnt out in Toomelah, with the GTS 923 located on the Bruxner Highway between Toomelah and Boggabilla having sustained minor damage.

Boggabilla residents revealed in August this type of behaviour had vastly become the new normal, fearing for the future of their once infamous border town.

Investigations are continuing.

Originally published as Goondiwindi property offences climb again after cooling off period