Boy, 12, faces long list of property charges
A 12-YEAR-OLD boy has been charged over a string of property offences at Mareeba, Wondecla, Woree, Lake Eacham and Edmonton over the past month.
The boy was charged with a total of 19 offences, which include nine counts of entering a premises and committing an indictable offence, four counts of unlawful use of a motor vehicle, two counts of burglary, three counts of stealing and one charge of failing to appear.
Police will allege the offences were committed in Mareeba between February 2 and March 2 and Wondecla, Woree, Lake Eacham and Edmonton on March 3.
Cairns police have charged almost 200 people on more than 780 charges since January 1. Police Minister Mark Ryan said officers from the Cairns Property Crime Squad would continue to target property offences. He said Operation Papa Achieve, a joint operation between Cairns-based plain clothes and uniformed officers, would continue to target known property offenders and crime hot spots.
Chief Superintendent Brett Schafferius said Cairns police remain committed to investigations and charging those responsible for property crimes.
contacted by the Cairns Post, the company’s CEO Aaron Finn said the State Government could have paid for a Nautilus helicopter for more than a year for the cost of the repairs and the BrisbaneTownsville journey.
“It would have covered the availability of our Bell 412 for 12 months. It would be ready to go whenever it was needed,” he said. “We could have flown the Premier around the floods and it would have probably cost them $4500.
“We were already in Tully doing the evacuation of the schoolchildren at the same time.”
Mr Finn said the repair bill could tally up to more than $2 million depending on the outcome of inspections.
The LNP last year made a commitment during their election pitch to spend $3 million over three years for a new privately-owned emergency helicopter to be on standby for rescues in the Far North.
Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch said he had written to the Premier and relevant ministers but their responses had been lacklustre.
“Taxpayers have got every right to be outraged,” he said.
He said the Far North’s rescue helicopter fleet had been a bone of contention for years, causing long delays coming to the aid of divers on the Reef.
“Nautilus have purchased an aircraft, basically the same as what they use – it’s fully equipped and meets all of the criteria and standards,” he said.
A Public Safety Business Agency spokeswoman confirmed the incident, but said all emergency call-outs were met.
She did not provide an estimate for the overall cost of repairs and travel.
“On arrival in Townsville, this helicopter sustained damage to its rotor blades which resulted in it becoming unserviceable,” she said. “It is anticipated that the helicopter will be back online at the end of March with other providers within the emergency helicopter network providing coverage during this period.”