Since the beginning of the year, a group of bandits have robbed six pokies venues across Victoria. They have evaded the police for months, and authorities are ramping up the efforts to catch these criminals. To encourage members of the public to help in the process, the local police are offering a generous $100 000 reward for information that will help the police catch the bandits.
It is no secret that gaming venues are among the most profitable places in the country. So, it makes sense that a group of money-hungry criminals would target pokies clubs in hopes of making a big score. This criminal faction has made a habit out of it, stealing from the tills of the gaming venue and the pockets of the general public.
They are responsible for the robberies of the follow venues: – Manningham Club(January 23 and September 15), Eltham Hotel (March 8), Boundary Hotel (March 26), Shoppingtown Hotel (April 1), Furlan Club (April 23) and Furlan Cub (July 12). When criminals steal from a pokies venue, they are not only stealing from the business and punters. They are actually taking valuable money away from the community.
Since poker machine profits are used to fund a wide range of local community projects and initiatives, health, education and sports programs across the country lose out. It has also become important for the police to catch these bandits, as their crimes have become increasingly violent. They carry heavy weapons and threaten the victims with violence.
Several victims have been sent to the hospital with minor injuries, and many have been traumatized by the experience. "These offenders need to be apprehended by police immediately and taken off our streets… before they offend again,” says a witness from Manningham Club. The authorities currently have two photos that clearly show the faces of criminals who have committed these crimes.
They have released the photos in hopes that the general public will help to identify the individuals. Should anyone have any information on the crimes committed, they should contact Crime Stoppers at: 1800 333 000.