A father whose stolen car was allegedly used to commit robberies in Melbourne is pleading with the Victorian government to be tougher on repeat youth offenders.
Melbourne man Rodolfo Arena and his wife and three daughters were sleeping when a group of teenagers allegedly drove off with their Jeep.
The following morning the 4WD was involved in a high-speed chase across Melbourne’s west, allegedly clocking speeds of more than 150km/hour.
The driver allegedly refused to pull over and stop sticks had to be used in the middle of the Tullamarine Freeway.
Two teens, aged 17 and 15, were arrested, and on bail at the time of the alleged crime spree.
“It’s just a scary feeling,” Arena told 9News.
“Thankfully no one was killed because that’s the other thing that played on my mind – if they killed someone with my car.”
The teens are also accused of stealing alcohol from a Liquorland in Aintree and robbing a 14-year-old boy of his mobile phone at the same shopping centre.
Both teens have been charged with theft of a motor vehicle, theft from a motor vehicle and robbery offences.
The 17-year-old driver was remanded in custody, but had previously been bailed on three occasions.
His 15-year-old passenger was bailed by a children’s court magistrate last month, but had been bailed seven times before that.
The allegations come as offending reaches shocking highs, with the city plagued by youth crime in recent months.
The latest Victorian crime statistics have revealed more than 21,000 crimes were committed by children in the 12 months to September 2023.
The youth crime rates are the highest recorded in a decade according to the Crime Statistic Agency, and are up more than 30 per cent since 2022.
According to the data, 15-year-old boys committed the most offences, and almost a third of the culprits were 14 and under.
Casey, Frankston, Melbourne’s CBD, Wyndham and Geelong are the worst-hit areas in the state.
Arena is now pleading with the state government to take a tougher stance on youth crime.
“I understand that they’re kids, but at the same time something needs to be done to protect the families,” he said.
“They need to run programs to educate these kids, you know, give them something else to do because it seems like they are just out and about, and just getting involved in crime because they’re bored.”
Victorian Police Minister Anthony Carbines today addressed the issue.
“Holding offenders to account is critically important to demonstrating support to victims to ensuring there are less victims,” he said.
