Criminals in New Norfolk have been exploiting the part-time police presence in the area to commit crimes, according to the local mayor.
Mayor Michelle Dracoulis has joined Labor MP’s Jen Butler and Rebecca White in calling for a greater police presence around the clock in the region, with the pair saying locals are feeling unsafe in the area.
“People are taking advantage of knowing when the police are and aren’t here,” Dracoulis said on Monday.
“I actually live in the middle of New Norfolk myself and you can tell when the police station is closed for the night because that’s when they kick off.”
“They’re coming sideways around the corners, the yelling and carrying on, I get trees ripped out on a fairly regular basis out the front.”
The nearby Bridgewater Police Station is set to close for renovations soon, with Butler urging the government to temporarily relocate some of the Bridgewater officers to New Norfolk to address the crime problem.
“This move will increase the police presence in the Derwent Valley and improve the Tasmanian Police’s efforts to deal with the crime wave currently consuming the community,” Butler said.
“There has been a spate of arson attacks across New Norfolk, costing the community hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages.”
Police and Emergency Minster Felix Ellis said the local New Norfolk force has grown by 5 in recent years, with 14 officers now stationed at the new $5 million facility.
Ellis refrained from commenting on Labor’s proposal but said that investment in the police was “never better than under a Liberal Government”.
A spokesperson from Tasmania Police confirmed that the proposal to temporarily reassign officers from Bridgewater to New Norfolk was currently under consideration.
