Broome youth crime: Business owners terrorised by unruly children in never ending wave of crime

Broome business owners under siege from a seemingly never-ending wave of youth crime are arming themselves with pepper spray as one shop owner said the once idyllic holiday getaway now “feels like Beirut”. A hardware store owner whose staff were terrorised by unruly youths twice in one week, including by a 10-year-old boy armed with a knife, also revealed there had been a “shocking” surge in the number of gun safes purchased. A general store worker said the pint-sized criminal gangs were subjecting staff to chemical attacks and even hurling snakes at them. Business owners told The West they fear the unrelenting crime wave will result in someone being seriously injured — or even killed — with calls growing for the Government to step in. Five teenagers were also arrested in a separate incident on November 5 after they allegedly broke into multiple properties and threatened three young women. The trio barricaded themselves inside a bedroom before the door was smashed down. The assaults on the Kimberley’s frontline of tourism and commerce come as a woman was allegedly raped after being lured out of her home with a light and a 27-year-old was allegedly stabbed to death during a row in Cable Beach last month. The beachside paradise has turned into hell on earth for some residents with crime soaring. There’s been a 178.7 per cent increase in crime since the 2014-15 financial year. Between January and September, 3244 offences were recorded, with the worst being family-related violence and stealing. Last financial year, in the suburb of Cable Beach, there were 1662 crimes reported with 36 of them sexual offences. The Broome Advertiser revealed last month Broome’s Mitre 10 store was caught up in a shocking incident on November 15 when five primary school-aged children, including the knife-wielding 10-year-old, gained access through a side entry before they threatened staff. Three children were charged while two were released without any repercussions. Mitre 10 manager Mick Chapman said one of his workers has been left “nervous and worried” following the juvenile rampage involving the boys and has since requested to not be left alone in the store. “She doesn’t want to be left alone in the shop anymore,” Mr Chapman said. “I didn’t realise how much impact that it had on her. My honest opinion for you is that ever since they brought in liquor restrictions, the crime has gone through the roof. “Sometimes it feels like Beirut.” A week later, Mr Chapman’s store was targeted again. “We had a group of young girls come through.... they did get around the back, tried to get in the shop and then they’d come around the front where the door was locked,” he said. While police were unable to confirm the details of the incident, one worker claimed one of the girls brandished a knife while shouting “I’ll shiv you,” through the locked door. Mr Chapman said the incident was clearly “orchestrated” after he witnessed the girls try and access other shops when they were refused entry to Mitre 10. “They had to shut every shop across the road because these girls were running amok and running into shops and (allegedly) stealing things,” he said. “I went, ‘bugger this’, I’m going to follow them around the corner because they went straight into the pearl shop. “There were six of them, mate, I didn’t know if they were going to smash the shop. “One was standing up the road on watch and there was a ringleader.... they know what they are doing and 10 points to them, they are clever.” Mr Chapman said he was also “shocked” at how many gun safes people had been purchasing from the store as people continued to raise their concerns about crime through petitions, community meetings, and social media pages. “They are also targeting tourists and that’s what’s going to kill us... if there is no tourism, there is no Broome,” Mr Chapman said. “I can tell you now my five-year-old child won’t be going to high school here.” Mr Chapman estimates he has lost around $40,000 worth of stock over the last year as a result of theft. “We are getting let down by the courts, that’s that’s how we feel,” he said. “It’s not the police, the police are doing a great job it just feels like they’ve got one hand tied behind their back.” Abby Chan — who works at Yuen Wing General Store — also spoke to The West, revealing how a group of young boys entered her store before spraying a “chemical” at staff this month. “Around two weeks ago kids came in here and they were hitting stuff and throwing things around,” she said. “They didn’t want to get out and they pulled some kind of spray out ... some kind of chemical and sprayed it. I went to close the door, they got scared and they kept trying to hit us.” Ms Chan said people should not be afraid to have difficult conversations about Broome’s crime crisis as multiple businesses feel the impact. “In the last few years, you see it getting worse and the youth making trouble are getting younger and younger,” Ms Chan said. “They are getting more empowered to commit crimes because they know they won’t get in trouble. It‘s not that I agree with punishment but they all know that if the police catch them some of them will be let go as they are underage.” Ms Chan said they had been keeping pepper spray behind the counter in case one of their workers was physically attacked. “You never know what can happen, right? They just had a knife pulled on them at Mitre 10 and I don’t want a knife pulled on me,” she said. “I think only love can fix the problem.” Another business owner — who wished to remain anonymous after 10 girls tried to gain entry to his store last month — said he was a victim of crime “every single day”. “We once had kids throw a snake behind the counter ... you name it, it’s happened to us,” he said. He said large groups of people who either sleep or congregate outside his store regularly abuse staff when they are asked to leave, forcing him to call the police. “I’m always reviewing CCTV and sending it to the police,” he said. “The worst thing to happen was when I was threatened with a 40cm knife over cigarettes.” “Families come here for school lunches and tradies come for breakfast so it’d be a huge loss.” While newly-appointed Broome Shire President Chris Mitchell denied the town was in a “crime crisis,” he said the lack of State housing was resulting in “overcrowding” which contributed to anti-social behaviour and youth crime. “We need the Government to prioritise some of these issues,” he said. “I fully understand how it all works but we need something up in the Kimberley and in the north of Western Australia to target these young people and be able to place them somewhere safe, where they are mentored, looked after and are going to be healthy. “We don’t want to be sending our young people down to Banksia Hill.... that’s the last thing we need because they’re off country, they’re away from family and we’re putting them in places where they’re going in with kids that have done more substantial crimes than what Kimberly is used to.” Mr Mitchell said liquor restrictions across the Kimberley were bringing antisocial behaviour to Broome’s public spaces which was adding further strain to the town. “We need to come up with mechanisms for some people to stay in their communities so they’re a valuable asset rather than being homeless in towns like Broome and Derby which is putting pressure on the system,” he said. “Let’s get something happening rather than just sitting back and waiting, waiting and waiting… We need the appropriate people to take charge.” Officer in charge of Broome Police Station Sen. Sgt Courtney Solly said police are continuing to work with the community in “both a preventative and enforcement capacity”. “Police are highly visible in the community and work closely with Department of Education, Department of Communities, Shire of Broome, PCYC, Broome Youth and Families Hub and other community groups to divert youth away from crime,” Sen Sgt Solly said. Last month WA Police Commissioner Col Blanch said violent crime in the Kimberley had been increasing “for some time”. “Property crime is significantly down in Broome on what it was last year, but again, serious crime, and violent crime, has been rising in the Kimberley for some time,” he said. “That’s why I have regular conversations about what other opportunities there are around alcohol and youth crime that we can always address, and I am working with government and the director of liquor licensing on those issues.” “Policing does its job, police arrest those who commit offences,” he said. “This is about the cause of the crime and the upbringing of children.”