Cobden plumbing contractor says theft is 'heart-wrenching' and will put business back

The theft, from Walsh Plumbing in Curdie Street, occurred in the early hours of Sunday morning, between about 1.30am and 2am.

A red or maroon Ford sedan was seen towing the 6x4 or 7x5 light blue tool trailer away.

Police said the Ford was seen parked near the side of the Cobden Motors site before it was seen backing through the side gates in Walker Street and stealing the trailer.

The car involved in the theft is distinctive with one mag wheel and three other wheels which are standard.

Owner Leigh Walsh said he was upset to discover the trailer and equipment, including a generator, missing from the yard on Sunday morning.

It's heart-wrenching people would do it," Mr Walsh said. "That they'd go in and flog someone's stuff.

"I was driving off to go to kids cricket and saw the gates open and thought 'what's going on here'?

"Someone's just got into my side gates of my shed, hooked it up and took off."

He said the theft would put the business back and it meant he would be unable to repair windmills, which was another core part of its operations.

"It's coming into that season now," he said. "It's when things start happening for us now in the summer. There's not too many of us around that do it anymore but there's still a few.

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"There's a lot of parts that are replaceable but I'll have to get them handmade again, hopefully they'll turn up."

Mr Walsh said it would be great to have the trailer and the items returned and asked any scrap metal business workers in the region to keep an eye out for items the thieves were "trying to flog off".

"Most of the things in the trailer were steel so any clamps, vices or brass fittings or pumps," he said.

Cobden police Senior Constable Rachel Wass called for witnesses or anyone with information to contact police.

"We're looking for anyone who may have seen anyone hanging around the old petrol station in Cobden, up that end of town," Senior Constable Wass said. "It's not an operational petrol station but there's still a workshop behind it.

"A maroon Ford was seen parked at that location for some time before it was seen backing though the gate and taking the trailer.

"We believe the offender may have been sitting there for a while," she said.

"If anyone saw anything suspicious please contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000."

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