Fury at kid crim terror wave
A TOWNSVILLE man fears someone will be killed before tougher action is taken to combat the city’s juvenile crime “epidemic”.
Condon man Paul Bow has lived in Townsville his whole life and said it was sad to see the direction the town was heading.
“The most disappointing thing I have seen most recently is the way in which we as a community are trying to deal with this crime spree that’s happening with these juveniles anywhere from 10 to 17 years,” Mr Bow said.
Mr Bow has had four instances of crime occur in his street in the last three weeks.
“I woke up at 1.40am one morning and there were two policemen with dogs in my street hunting three fugitives,” he said.
“At the moment it seems like the tail is wagging the dog – we are having juvenile delinquents dictating to us what they’re going to do and how they’re going to go about it.”
Mr Bow is frustrated with the laws to deal with juveniles.
“The police seem just so depleted because they know the current laws, they’re not going to be able to make a huge difference,” he said. “There seems to be a loophole and the kids know it, there’s no repercussions for the kids.”
He is specifically concerned with the ramifications of juveniles stealing cars.
“Once these people start stealing these cars and driving them at excessive speeds, there is no difference between that and autonomous weapons,” Mr Bow said.
He is afraid members of community will eventually be impacted.
“There is going to be a catastrophe in Townsville because we’ve left it too late to do something,” Mr Bow said.
Mr Bow believes it is about focusing on the offenders
“It has to start with education and us identifying the roots of the problem,” he said. “The family life, the culture and the environment where these offenders are coming from.”
Mr Bow met with Thuringowa MP Aaron Harper yesterday to voice his concerns.
Mr Harper said he continues to work closely with Major General Stuart Smith ( Ret) and the other Townsville MPs
“I’m still disappointed, angry and frustrated that this issue continues to plague our Townsville community,” Mr Harper said.
“We’re not sitting on our hands – I continue to be a strong voice to the Premier and Police Minister.”