Bushfire survivor’s home targeted by heartless looters who ransacked it and stole boy’s bike

A woman who fled from bushfires on the back of a horse returned to find her home still standing – but ransacked by disgraceful looters.

A woman who fled from a raging bushfire on the back of a horse has returned to her home to find it ransacked by heartless looters.

Bec Winter, from Moruya on the New South Wales South Coast, and her young son Riley were forced from their property on New Year’s Eve when conditions deteriorated.

Ms Winter told Today that they fled on the back of a rescue horse named Charmer, saying:

“I saddled the horse up immediately, shaking like you wouldn’t believe … it was just unbelievable.”

When they returned yesterday, the house was still standing but had been picked through and trashed by looters.

“Yesterday, we thought we will go in if we can, stay there, we will stay, and we walked into find the house totally ransacked,” Ms Winter told Today.

“I have no words. Yesterday Riley asked if he could swear and I said, ‘darling today you can’. You know. He was devastated … It’s heartbreaking”

Among the items stolen was a bicycle Riley had just received as a Christmas gift.

Bec Winter fled with her son Riley on a horse.

Looters ransacked Bec Winter's home.

The disgusting incident comes a day after police issued a stern warning to potential looters targeting bushfire victims, after a teenager was allegedly caught stealing from an evacuated home in the NSW Riverina region.

Authorities on Thursday ordered the 1300 residents of Batlow to leave after declaring the Snowy Valley township “not defendable” against the 130,000 hectare Dunns Road fire predicted to hit today.

Police will allege a 19-year-old man broke into a rural property on Old Tumbarumba Road at about 3.30pm, shortly after the owners had evacuated.

The man allegedly searched through the house before stealing a Ford Falcon sedan. He was arrested after officers from Riverina Police District spotted the vehicle driving erratically nearby.

Police initiated a pursuit, but it was terminated shortly after due to safety concerns. Soon after, officers located the sedan after it crashed into a tree.

A 19-year-old accused looter is under police guard after crashing this stolen Ford Falcon into a tree at Batlow in the Snowy Valley. Picture: NSW Police

Fire bears down on the Snowy Valley township of Batlow, 110km from Wagga Wagga. Picture: Twitter

Authorities have declared the NSW Riverina township of Batlow ‘non defendable’. Picture: Twitter

The driver was taken to Wagga Wagga Base Hospital in a stable condition, where he remains under police guard.

A backpack containing several items believed to be stolen, including jewellery, documentation, and ammunition was found inside the car.

NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Gary Worboys said officers from the Public Order and Riot Squad, Police Transport and Highway Patrol commands had been deployed to help secure properties in bushfire affected areas.

“Any reports of these criminal acts will be thoroughly investigated,” Deputy Commissioner Worboys said.

“This sort of behaviour will not be tolerated by police or the wider community, and we will take immediate action to bring these people before the courts.

“I also ask members of the community to be vigilant. If you see a crime being committed, call triple-0 immediately.”

Scumbag looters in the Blue Mountains, waiting for people to evacuate or drive down to Sydney for Xmas. We had people come to our door, pretending to look for somebody. Then a van backing into the driveway, moments after we'd left, to stake out the place (security cameras) Awful.

— LJ Charleston (@LJCharleston) December 24, 2019

Sussex Inlet shopkeeper Sue Mazzuoli says a shortage of supplies in cut-off towns ravaged by bushfire has reduced desperate families to stealing food. Picture: A Current Affair

Reports of people preying on those displaced by the bushfire crisis and scoping out empty properties have been circulating on social media for weeks.

“Scumbag looters in the Blue Mountains, waiting for people to evacuate or drive down to Sydney for Xmas,” Sydney journalist Libby-Jane Charleston tweeted on Christmas Eve.

”We had people come to our door, pretending to look for somebody. Then a van backing into the driveway, moments after we’d left, to stake out the place (security cameras). Awful.”

People queue for non-refrigerated food at the Batemans Bay Coles. Picture: John Grainger

This supermarket at Sussex Inlet has reportedly been targeted by desperate families unable to access ATMs or eftpos due to power outages on the south coast. Picture: A Current Affair

There are also reports of increasing lawlessness on the NSW south coast, where one of the biggest evacuations in the country’s history has been playing out since authorities declared a 14,000km area between Nowra and the Victorian border a “tourist leave zone” on Thursday.

The mass exodus had left thousands stranded on the A1 Princes Highway, forced to sleep in their cars bumper to bumper in a traffic jam stretching several kilometres.

Services stations in the area have run out of fuel and supermarket shelves have been emptied in the rush to stock up on food.

Many businesses have been forced to accept cash only after power outages shut down ATMs and eftpos services.

As a result, authorities are advising evacuees to carry enough food and water, clothes and money to last three days.

On Friday, South Coast shopkeeper Sue Mazzuoli toldChannel 9 locals were facing “bedlam” as hordes of tourists raced to leave the area — taking vital supplies with them.

Some were so desperate they had been reduced to stealing from a Sussex Inlet supermarket, she said.

“They were stealing from the supermarket because they had to feed the family and they had no money,” Ms Mazzuoli told A Current Affair.

“People were just panicking, especially the kids, the kids were just really worried.”

Ms Mazzuoli claimed she had told visitors to get out of town because they’re using up resources the locals will need.

“You can’t access petrol, gas ran out, chaos at the supermarket,” she said.

“All the ATMs are down, and the young people these days travel with no money, so they were even more panicked.”

People queue for petrol Merimbula on New Year’s Eve after bushfires cut off the entire south coast of NSW. Stuart McEvoy/The Australian.

Stranded motorists on the Princes Highway after running out of fuel. Picture: Gary Ramage

Imagine being on the Indue cashless debit card in a fire zone and not knowing if you can purchase fuel/ food for your family because the power might be down. #AustraliaBurning #AustraliaBushfires

— Shaun (@parsect) January 2, 2020

Hi world. The scale of evacuation in Australia's South coast right now is truly massive.

The area marked by @NSWRFS as a 'leave zone' ~ = London, or NYC. pic.twitter.com/yAnZltBRpy

— Ketan Joshi (@KetanJ0) January 2, 2020

'Humanitarian crisis' unfolding in southern NSW@newscomauHQ#NSWfires #ausfires #AustraliaBurning #vicfires

Live blog: https://t.co/HJtSDjs73t pic.twitter.com/elHOwG7UfG

— Marnie O'Neill (@marnieoneill7) January 1, 2020

In Jindabyne in southern NSW on Friday, Police have charged a man for allegedly lighting for fires on his property without a permit.

Emergency services were called to Kalkite Road, Kalkite, about 8.40pm on Thursday following reports of several fires on a rural property.

The fires were extinguished just before 9.15pm, with no injuries reported.

Around 12 noon on Friday, the property’s occupant, an 84-year-old man, was served with a Court Attendance Notice for Wednesday 19 February at Cooma Local Court.

There is currently a State of Emergency declared in NSW due to the bushfire crisis in the southeast of the state.

The fire risk in the Monaro Alpine region is rated as very high, with a total fire ban in force. The incident is not liked to a fore deliberately lit in bushland this morning elsewhere in Jindabyne.