Elderly victims wants justice
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MT GRAVATT: One local couple has found cold comfort in claims burglaries are on the decline, after thieves ransacked their home during the Christmas holidays.
Dale and June Handley, both aged in their 70s, are thousands of dollars out of pocket and want the culprits brought to justice.
The Handleys were on holiday, with Mrs Handley recovering from a serious injury when the police called.
They arrived home to find intruders had smashed through a triple-locked steel security door before destroying a security system and ransacking the house.
Mr Handley said the thieves took the couple’s passports, ornaments including a prized set of jazz musician figurines, his father’s World War I medals and a large sum of cash from the sale of an old boat lovingly restored over 10 years.
"I don’t expect to get the money back," Mr Handley said. "What I want is these people caught.
"My wife had five weeks in hospital. She’s 73 years old and works part time helping children.
``These people just went through the house and emptied everything out. It's devastated her.''
Mr Handley is angry the police have not caught the robbers and says the legal system is too soft on those who are charged.
``Enough is enough. The magistrates are not handing out tough enough sentences,'' he said.
Detective Senior Constable Bernie Quinlan, of Mt Gravatt CIB, said lack of forensic evidence and information was slowing the investigation.
``These things can be difficult to solve, but we're looking into matters of a similar nature,'' Sen-Constable Quinlan said.
``I sympathise with them for what they have gone through, but this is a timely reminder not to keep large quantities of cash at home and check that insurance cover is adequate.''
Police Minister Judy Spence said ``proactive policing strategies and increased community awareness'' had resulted in unlawful entry figures in the South Brisbane district dropping 20 per cent in three years.
Last year 670 offences, 18 per cent of the reported 3687 unlawful entries, were cleared up.
In the previous two years there were 4119 and 4670 unlawful entry reports respectively, with 666 and 697 crimes solved.
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