WESTERN Port Men’s Shed can’t take a trick.
The club is reeling for the second time in months after another callous robbery at their clubhouse in Frankston-Flinders Road. This time burglars stole the $6000 in tools generously donated to replace the last lot stolen.
Shed president Colin Proud said this latest robbery, overnight Sunday 27 October, came at an especially bad time as members had several community projects in the pipeline.
“It’s a real kick in the guts,” he said.
“I got a hell of a shock when I got here yesterday and saw they’d knocked off another load of tools.
“They were probably professionals because they left no fingerprints.
“It appears they waited a couple of months for us to get a full complement of tools after their last visit.”
The burglars bent security locks and levered their way through doors to gain entry. Their haul included a new welder, cordless drills, nail guns, sanders, planers and routers.
“I’ve just put in the claim to the insurance company,” Mr Proud said. “It will be for a little bit more this time.”
One lucky break was that the shed’s laptop computer was with Mr Proud at the time or it would probably have gone, too.
Mr Proud said he would look into buying security cameras that could be relocated when the shed’s new home at Sudholz Street, Bittern is complete. Work is due to start at the end of January.
First published in the Western Port News – 6 November 2019
