A SERIES of arrests for alleged burglaries and thefts in the Rochester area have failed to stop on-farm crime as a community group continues to report thefts during the sowing season.
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The Timmering-Nanneella-Fairy Dell Community Action Group collates reports of suspicious activity and distributes the information to farmers and property owners in the area.
Maree Traill, who co-ordinates the group, said farmers were continuing to see unknown cars driving up and down their rural lanes in the middle of the night – as recently as last week.
“I had a call this morning from farmers who could see cars driving down one-way roads. The traffic has increased in the last few weeks,” she said.
“The only people who use these roads are the farmers who live there. But there are cars driving up and down them all the time.
“Just one week ago we got another call from a farmer who saw cars moving on the roads between 11pm and midnight.”
A farmer had 400 litres of diesel stolen from his Timmering property last week. Another instance involved the theft of a trailer, which the offender used to load up with stolen motorbikes.
A number of arrests were made at the end of 2016 in an effort to stem on-farm crime in the area.
Nanneella man Jacob Jenkins, 23, pleaded guilty last week to 20 charges, including two counts of burglary, four counts of theft, six counts of handling stolen goods and three counts of theft of a firearm.
He also pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking methylamphetamine.
Jenkins was committed to a plea hearing in the Bendigo County Court later this year.
He stole about $100,000 in property from farms near Rochester at the end of 2016, including firearms.
His house was raided by police on Christmas Day and he was arrested a few days later.
Four people were also charged in relation to an aggravated burglary in Bamawm, north of Rochester, in November during which firearms and a car were stolen.
They will re-appear in the Bendigo Magistrates’ Court on July 5.
The Timmering-Nanneella-Fairy Dell group uses social media, email and phone calls to alert property owners of suspicious activity.
Ms Traill said they could distribute the information as soon as it came to hand, but many farmers did not have the resources to protect their assets at short notice.
She said there was one reason for the increase in crime in recent years.
“It’s 100 per cent for drugs,” Ms Traill said.
“In Rochester, Echuca, Kyabram, the drug problem is rife. It’s like an infectious disease that’s spreading throughout the region.
“So many people get sucked into it.”
Kyabram police confirmed they are continuing to investigate on-farm crime in the area.