Burglars trashed a $60,000 ute after doing burnouts at the Terang cemetery at the weekend as part of the second crime spree to the hit the region in a fortnight. The thieves stole keys from a Terang house while the owners slept before trashing the ute.
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Three vehicles were stolen, a sporting club burgled and items taken from cars during the crime wave which began late Friday.
The black Ford Ranger ute was stolen when the culprits entered the house between 3am and 5am on Saturday.
Sergeant Andy Raven, of Warrnambool police, said the ute was extensively damaged and driven for some time on just the wheel rim.
“They just trashed it,” he said. The ute was dumped at the cemetery and the offenders were later spotted at the golf course where one was apprehended after a foot chase by police.
During the crime spree, a blue Holden Commodore taken from Terang was found dumped near Panmure, and another stolen from just outside Panmure was found dumped nearby.
A window was smashed and alcohol stolen from the Noorat Cricket Club and minor damage was caused during an attempted burglary at the Terang Civic Hall.
A man has been charged and will face court on Monday.
Sergeant Raven said the thefts follow a similar crime spree in Port Fairy last week.
“We say it all the time. Lock your doors, lock your cars,” he said.
“People think it’s not going to happen to them but it is.”
