Police appeal for information on Skyrail damage in Frankston
A VANDALISM rampage through a Frankston Skyrail site has damaged expensive equipment, with police hunting the person responsible for the “mindless” attack.
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UP to $100,000 worth of heavy machinery has been damaged in an attack at a level crossing removal site in Melbourne’s southeast.
About 10 vehicles, including excavators and scissor lifts, had hydraulic hoses cut, windows smashed and radiators punctured at Frankston last month.
It’s believed the vandalism rampage lasted no longer than 20 minutes.
A 40-year-old Seaford man was arrested on Friday but released pending inquiries.
Police initially suspected opposition to the new elevated rail line at the crossing motivated the attack, but this has since been ruled out, along with any contractor disputes.
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Sen-Constable Nicholas Jung, of Frankston CIU, told the Sunday Herald Sun: “It’s mindless damage for no particular reason. Whatever the person was going there to achieve, they just achieved the damage that was caused.’’
The vandal — likely armed with hand tools or a knife — struck near the new Skye/Overton Rd overpass between 5.30pm on July 12 and 6.30am the next day.
The vehicles, which also had sand poured into their fuel tanks, were stored in a fenced compound near the corner of Corlett St and Dandenong Rd East.
Sen-Constable Jung said workers who used the equipment could have been seriously hurt or worse.
“The damage was pretty obvious to a lot of people, but because of the amount of machinery damaged they didn’t know until they went into a lot of their vehicles that the hydraulics had been cut or radiators punctured,’’ he said.
“There was the potential for someone to be hurt or something more serious to have happened.
“These guys know their machinery so they knew something wasn’t right when they got there.”
Police have appealed for anyone who saw anything suspicious in the area, or who might be able to provide CCTV or dashcam footage, to come forward.
Frankston CIU can be contacted on 9784 5590, or Crime Stoppers via 1800 333 000.