Police flood suburb in crime crackdown
A NORTHERN Gold Coast suburb has been inundated with police to crack down on crime in the area.
Pimpama will see an influx of police over the next couple of days as one of the fastest growing suburbs in the state continues to see a rise in crime.
In the past year Pimpama has seen 126 home break-ins, 49 cars stolen, 125 assaults and seven robberies, moving police to focus on crime throughout the growing northern corridor.
Northern Patrol Group, Senior Sergeant Nick Sellars said Operation Bombous was about putting a high police presence into the booming suburb.
“We’re conducting Operation Bombous focusing on Pimpama at the northern end of the Gold Coast, in relation to crime trends and reports we’ve had from members of the public,” he said.
“We have the whole range of crimes from break and enters to steal from motor vehicle, stealing number plates … it’s something we like to ensure we keep on top of.
“It’s a booming area, the population is increasing as fast as anywhere in Australia … quite simply there is a lot of people living in this area, a lot of activity, a lot of construction and unfortunately with that, follows some crime.”
Sen-Sgt Sellars admitted the Coast had a youth crime issue, but said it wasn’t just young crims targeting the region.
“I think youth crime is an issue across the Gold Coast, as is other offenders committing offences.
“It’s not just the youth, I think we’ve all said it before, there’s a lot of older people out there committing offences and they really should know better.”
He said the two-day operation would focus on engaging with the public, but also enforcing the law and targeting criminals lurking in the north.
“There will be numerous sections within the Gold Coast district performing enforcement operations.
“We are trying to saturate the area as we do from time to time. The message to the residents is that we are looking constantly at doing things the best way we can, we are constantly reviewing our crime statistics, I mean daily and multiple times a day.”
Sen-Sgt Sellars said the operation would also help police build intelligence on what’s happening in the area.
“A lot of intelligence comes from members of the public.
“The fact we are engaging with members of the public and you’d be surprised how many people will just wander up and talk to the police and during those conversations we learn an awful lot.
“Current methodologies of policing have changed over the years from the historical beat cop … and the police enjoy getting back to those traditional policing methods.”
If you have any information about crime in Pimpama, contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
IT’S NOT JUST THE YOUTH... THERE’S A LOT OF OLDER PEOPLE OUT THERE COMMITTING OFFENCES SENIOR SERGEANT NICK SELLARS