Mum fears for life over burglaries
After four break-ins, Epsom woman joins voluntary neighbourhood patrol group
An Epsom mother who says she fears for her life after being burgled four times in four years has joined her local community patrol in the hopes of preventing it from happening to others.
Following a spike in violent crime across Auckland, the woman — who wants to remain anonymous — became determined to make a change and encourages others to do the same.
The woman said the burglars once came in broad daylight on a Saturday.
She said the repeated victimisation had left her “extremely angry, sad, and traumatised” but she was still determined to make a change.
“I don’t want to be targeted. I fear for my life, I fear for my safety.
“I have decided to do something about it to make this place — this suburb of mine — safe for myself, for my children and for the people that live in this suburb.”
The woman joined the Epsom Community Patrol, one of more than 150 local groups where volunteers patrol communities, reporting suspicious activity to police.
“I think we as a neighbourhood, we as a community, need to be vigilant. And we need to support each other and, if we can, support this community patrol,” she said.
Epsom Community Patrol founder and leader Rod Gabb is pleading for more volunteers and funding to match the concerns of growing crime in the suburbs.
He said the group covered the “crime triangle” — an area of elevated crime between Manukau Rd, Green Lane West, and Great South Rd.
Recent incidents in the patrol area included the double ram-raid of Partridge Jewellers, the alleged arson of City Garden Lodge in Parnell, and the alleged murder at the Off Broadway Motel.
Sixteen volunteers have joined since May last year, but Gabb said they needed far more.
“There’s crime all over the place, but there’s particularly a lot of crime that happens in central Epsom,” Gabb said.
“I’d like to reverse the numbers [of volunteers] and call it 61. I’d like to get a seriously larger number.”
Gabb and his team patrol the streets in the evening and communicate directly with police to improve response times.
They had no authority to detain anyone or intervene, but Gabb said they still played a crucial role in keeping streets safe.
“We patrol the residential business and industrial areas to deter and identify criminal activity, so effectively we’re an extra set of eyes and ears for the police.”
The only funding for the patrol was $250 from Westfield Newmarket for a securing-plates initiative and about $1300 from Albert-Eden Local Board.
“It’s certainly a helpful amount, but obviously we need a heck of a lot more,” he said.
Since the patrol began, all costs, including petrol and maintenance of the patrol vehicle, were covered by the members.
He hoped to have the volunteers and vehicles to run patrols seven days a week.
“A lot of people comment and criticise how much crime is out there, but we’ve got an opportunity to help reduce it,” he said.
The Epsom Community Centre’s co-manager Lucy Jensen started noticing some people staying overnight, leaving the place damaged while stealing food, alcohol, and in one case, a television.
The Community Patrol had been extremely helpful, Jensen said.
A liquor store owner signed up after his store was ram-raided and his dad held at gunpoint.
He found out about the patrol while being robbed.
“I said, ‘How did the cops know? How did the service arrive so quick?’ I was quite amazed,” he said.
Onehunga Senior Constable Don Allan said the police couldn’t do their job without the help of the community, and patrols have been instrumental.
“We had one incident down the country where a homicide suspect was located in relation to information provided by local community patrollers.”