By EMMA SUN
Community victory as tagging gang rounded up…
POLICE have arrested four teenagers believed to be responsible for a graffiti “epidemic” in Monbulk.
Graffiti in the form of tags and murals has been rampant in the main streets of the town in recent months, leaving police furious and the community facing hefty repair bills.
Monbulk Police Station Sergeant Mark Knight said there were very few buildings left untouched at the height of the attacks.
“They normally target private and public places where it’s visible, public toilets, on the back of shops, where people are driving in and out, bus stops and council property,” he said.
“Our main problem has been shops and business walls and windows, but they’ve also defaced the art in our area – it was a bit of an epidemic.
“Everywhere you looked there was graffiti, the community centre, the local primary school, that’s how rampant the four had been.
“We found that as soon as we clean the wall the tags would go up again, sometimes within hours – they’ve just got no conscience.”
Leading Senior Constable Sandra Madden arrested a 13-year-old Monbulk boy on Sunday 21 July for graffiting various buildings and public toilets, and last Wednesday arrested a 15-year-old Monbulk boy for criminal damage.
Both will face the Ringwood Children’s Court at a later date.
Two 18-year-olds from Monbulk were arrested and interviewed by Leading Senior Constable Peter Edyvane last Wednesday for graffiti criminal damage and will both face Ringwood Magistrate’s Court at a later date.
Sgt Knight said it was concerning as the teens had no consideration for the greater community and caused a damage bill of hundreds of dollars.
“Their behaviour is destructive, it’s irresponsible and they lack community and town values, the respect of people’s property,” he said.
“I don’t think they care about anybody bar themselves, their behaviour is deplorable and the bulk of the community here don’t think what they’re doing is any form of art.”
However Sgt Knight said the arrests were a great result for the community which can now go back to normal lives and start removing the graffiti.
“Our offenders that we’ve charged have given us undertakings that they’ve finished with this behaviour so the police are now encouraging people to paint over the graffiti and get the town back to what it was,” he said.
“It’s been a tremendous result accomplished through lots of hard work and man hours put in by the police at Monbulk.”
