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Hospitality businesses ransacked by youth crime in Cairns
Youth crime is getting progressively worse across the country; however, Queensland seems to have been the hardest hit.
The latest incident in Queensland’s teenage crime spree has left a Cairns restaurateur cleaning up the ashes after a small fire at his business and calling for action on youth crime.
A group of teens were caught on camera targeting Dundees on the Waterfront restaurant.
CCTV footage shows four youths entering the alfresco area of Dundees on the Waterfront, rummaging through drawers and scattering documents all over the floor, before one girl grabbed a flammable hand sanitising liquid at about 4am on Tuesday and accidentally set fire to a foam cushion.
The footage shows the girl panicking before swatting out the fire.
Proprietor Gary Low said this was the 11th time Dundees had been targeted, with other crimes including acts of theft and vandalism.
“This is a weekly occurrence, it’s not just a one off,” Low said.
He said teens were constantly hassling guests on the boardwalk, snatching guest’s phones, defacing tables and throwing furniture into the inlet.
In a recent situation, one teen pulled a knife.
“It’s getting serious, so something’s going to break. And what it is that’s going to break I don’t really know but they need to do something,” he said.
Other hospitality businesses have been in the firing line of youth crime.
Wharf ONE Cafe owner Peter Crotty spoke of the thousands of dollars he had to pay in damages after would-be thieves sprayed graffiti all over his venue.
Meanwhile dozens of CBD businesses have ben targeted, with iScream Desserts being completely ransacked and having to close for weeks in April.
While the Palaszczuk government has instigated some measures to tackle the growing problem, business owners are fed up.
Opposition justice spokesman Tim Nicholls has blamed the Queensland government for the rise in youth crime.
“Seven years ago today, the Palaszczuk Labor Government watered-down Queensland’s crime laws by amending the Youth Justice Act,” he said.
“Seven years ago today, they gave rise to a generation of untouchables.
Jonathan Jackson, 29th June 2023
