Under siege - no way out for dairy owners

Tuesday, 5 December 2017

Palmerston Mini Mart in Hamilton has been robbed multiple times.

Owners of a Hamilton dairy are caught in a cycle of robberies that make them sleep armed with bats in a store they want to leave but can't sell.

Forced to keep the doors open in the face of a string of violent attacks in order to pay the bills they want urgent Government action.

Police Minister Stuart Nash has promised that the Coalition Government is looking at immediate steps including subsidising fog cannons to stop the brazen robbers he says are being driven to feed their drug habits.

Last week Ajit Farrar lost his eye when four bandits stormed his family owned shop at lunchtime, one armed with a knife.

And now another family, who run a quaint corner store in the Hamilton Lake area, are struggling to sell after being relentlessly targeted.

* Waikato dairy owner to stop selling cigarettes to prevent robberies**

* Dairy owner loses an eye during robbery in Hamilton

Ten days after he was struck in the face with a metal pipe during a Sunday afternoon robbery, the dairy worker, too afraid to be named, has taken to sleeping in his store.

But at 3am on Tuesday he was woken by two men who forced their way into the Palmerston St Mini Mart.

He had decided to stay overnight after what he believed to be a robbery attempt on the Monday morning.

'We felt they were coming again…and they did,' he said, still sporting a black eye and bruising from a previous attack.

The man woke to hear the door breaking and was confronted by two men.

One went at him with a crowbar, Detective Senior Sergeant Dean Anderson confirmed.

'One has swung a crowbar at him but missed.'

The scuffle continued as the man tried to call the police. The dairy owner hit the robber with a stick as he fled with confectionery.

Signs had been put up around the store, warning of reduced hours due to the robberies.

The family want to sell but no one was buying, the store worker said. They've owned the dairy for the last year, and been hit three times in five months.

Earlier this year it was the man's sister in the shop with her two pre-school age children when the robbers came.

'We're scared, we're a small shop and we don't have much cash or cigarettes.

'This is New Zealand now, it's worse and worse. The New Zealand Government needs to change the rules, even the police they can't do anything because the Government doesn't give them the power.

'We need help.'

Nash said the Government was taking these crimes very seriously.

'It's an absolutely terrible situation. It's not the New Zealand I grew up in and not the New Zealand I want to bring my kids up in.

'No one should have to feel unsafe at work or have to sleep at work in order to keep their business protected.'

Over the next three years the coalition Government has allocated 1800 more police officers, he said.

'I know that can't kick in immediately, it is going to take time, but the way we are going to do this is by putting more police officers in the community.'

Methamphetamine was the driving force behind the crimes, Nash said. Criminals were stealing cigarettes and trading them to feed their drug habits.

'Until we get that under control we will still see this violent crime. Meth turns rational people into irrational beings.

'We need an all government approach through health, mental health and addiction and education.'

When the Government upped taxes on cigarettes, Nash, who sat on the Finance and Expenditure Select committee, said research showed the higher the price the greater the numbers of people who quit.

'But I also understand that those who have a heavy addiction, it has an impact on their ability to feed their family and make rational decisions with limited money.

'I don't blame this on the price of tobacco, but on the addiction to P.'

Last year National launched a $1.8million Safer Dairies programme to help small businesses such as dairies increase security and protection. Nash believes the scheme had not been taken up by dairies as it was unaffordable.

Instead the Government was looking at other options including subsidising fog cannons.

'That is a band-aid and what we need is more police on the streets, that is the answer until that can happen we need a solution that is affordable in the short term.'

Hamilton West National MP Tim Macindoe said while fog cannons could help, they're probably not enough.

Macindoe said he will be meeting up with police to discuss what else can be done.

'I would like an assurance that the police are giving it all of the important attention that it demands, because it is a very real worry.

'I fear that drugs are a major factor behind it.

'And we know that cigarettes are becoming more and more of a black market item as the price increases'.

Anderson said police were working with the store owner on security at the store.