Data supplied to the National Party shows more than two ram-raid burglaries were committed across the country every day throughout August.
Numerous east Auckland businesses have been targeted in such offending this year, including a jewellery store, liquor shops and a dairy, among others.
Ram-raids involve an offender or offenders driving a vehicle into a store or business to gain entry to it.
National’s police spokesperson Mark Mitchell says 67 businesses were the victims of ram-raids in August.
“That’s second only to the 73 that occurred in March,” says Mitchell, who talked to the Times about crime issues during a visit to east Auckland earlier this year.
“That ram-raids have continued at such an unacceptable rate highlights the fact Labour is incapable of keeping Kiwis safe.”
Numerous east Auckland businesses have been targeted and damaged in ram-raids this year.
Centre Superette in Bucklands Beach was ransacked by thieves during a ram-raid in January.
Ormiston Town Centre was the site of two ram-raids in April.
A group of people caused extensive damage during a ram-raid at LiquorLand Howick in April with the same store targeted again in June.
David Fels Jeweller in Howick’s Picton Street was damaged during a ram-raid in April.
The Noel Leeming store at Botany Town Centre was targeted in a ram-raid in July.
Mitchell says the Labour Government announced the formation of a $6 million crime-prevention fund in May after “significant political, media and public pressure”.
Money in the fund is to be invested in a programme managed by police that includes solutions such as installing bollards or other protection structures, the Government said at the time.
Mitchell says 97 per cent of the fund, which was intended to support 500 businesses, is unused.
“Police Minister Chris Hipkins has thrown police under the bus, telling them to work faster to deliver a poorly thought-out policy that was rushed due to political pressure.
“Instead of blaming frontline police, the minister should take a look in the mirror and accept his Government’s soft-on-crime approach has created a situation where police resources are stretched, trying to clean up Labour’s mess.”
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was recently questioned by reporters about the number of ram-raids being carried out nationwide.
“Everyone is keen to find solutions to protect those business owners and prevent what has been an issue primarily in two parts of the country, and we continue to invest in those solutions,” she said.
“But the idea that somehow we’ve created an environment where this is acceptable, I totally reject that.”
Ardern was also asked about Government initiatives designed to prevent such offending which are yet to come to fruition.
She said about 40 assessments for businesses from the crime-prevention fund had taken place.
“The flipside here is we’ve got to make sure the intervention works.
“So you can see why we’ve got to make sure police have the ability to go and undertake those individual assessments and make sure that whatever it is, whether it’s roller doors, whether or not it’s bollards, that is a solution that is going to have a lasting impact.”
