Smash but no grab
Three men wearing balaclavas and armed with a demolition saw smashed their way into Warragul’s Telstra store early Friday morning but left with nothing.
Baw Baw CIU detectives said the offenders smashed through the front glass door at 4.42am.
Offenders also smashed their way into the former Telstra store at 12 Smith St but left when they discovered no phones were stored at the premises.
The men travelled to the scene in a white Volkswagon that had previously been stolen in Melbourne.
A driver sat in the vehicle that was parked in the roundabout, facing south, at the intersection of Palmerston and Smith Sts.
Police said the three armed men went straight to the back of the store and forced their way into a back room.
They smashed open a cabinet that contained prepaid mobile phones and SIM cards.
Police said the three men were in the store for about 30 seconds before fleeing the store and getting back into the vehicle with no phones or equipment.
The driver of a small commercial vehicle noticed the vehicle and suspicious activity and began chasing the vehicle several times around the roundabout before it left the scene.
The man then reported the incident to police.
Police believe the incident is related to similar incidents in metropolitan areas.
A similar incident also occurred in Warragul in February this year when offenders smashed their way into the store and left with $120,000 worth of phones.