‘Please leave it to us’: Whitsunday police warn against confronting thieves in the act

‘We need the community’s help but we need it in the right way’

Apprehending suspected thieves is a job best left to police, says the Whitsundays’ officer-in-charge.

Frustrated residents considering taking the law into their own hands and apprehending thieves targeting their property are being warned to leave crime fighting to the authorities.

A spate of car thefts and home break-ins have put residents on guard, with comments lighting up social media calling for community-lead action to drive the offenders out of town.

Mounting reports of stolen property in recent weeks have lead some residents to question whether they needed to defend their homes.

But Whitsunday police have warned against such action, with Senior Sergeant Nathan Blain saying people should never put themselves in a position where they could be harmed.

“The last thing we want to see is a member of the public acting in good faith thinking they’re doing the right thing, getting hurt themselves, or causing an incident to occur that could have been avoided,” Sergeant Blain said.

“So please leave it to police to apprehend the people.

“That’s what we’re paid for and that’s what we’re trained to be doing.”

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Community members wanting to take action against suspected thieves were advised to phone triple-0 to report suspicious behaviour, and take video recordings from a safe distance.

“We can’t be everywhere at once so we do rely on people to help us out, and if they want to start videoing things or getting dashcams, that sort of thing can be really helpful in our investigations,” Sergeant Blain said.

Reports of stolen vehicles and other property offences in the Whitsundays have “subsided” this week compared to the previous week, following the arrest of several people in Mackay on Thursday, Sergeant Blain said.

There had been one report of stolen number plates in the Whitsunday region, he said.

“But apart from that, we thank the community for taking our advice and keeping their cars and their houses locked up when unattended,” he said.

Sergeant Blain confirmed the Mackay arrests were linked to property offences committed in the Whitsundays, but said the arrests were not a reason for residents to become “complacent” about security.

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Originally published as ‘Please leave it to us’: Whitsunday police warn against confronting thieves in the act