How two cans of Coke cost a Loch business $30,000

YOU’D think they’d leave us alone after a spate of 10 burglaries in the space of four days in the past week, mainly in Wonthaggi, including a fearful ramraid at the Shell Service Station in White Road last Sunday morning.

But the dumbest crooks in the business were back in action in the early hours of Tuesday morning in Loch, using a stolen ute to ramraid their Shell petrol station.

The would-be thieves backed the ute through the front window and glass door, sending shattered glass flying through the store, across groceries and merchandise, and scratching cabinets and shelving inside.

“They were after the cigarettes but we recently installed a new steel cabinet which has been bolted down securely,” said the petrol station operator.

“They couldn’t get into it so in the end, they’ve taken a couple of cans of Coke and left.

“I believe they abandoned the ute at Ruby.”

The tragedy, for the petrol station owners, who have been burgled more than a dozen times in recent years, is that the criminals have left a $30,000 trail of destruction, inside and outside the store, that will cost a small fortune to fix.

“We’ve had the builders in today, so we’ll be back up and open at 7am tomorrow morning (Wednesday) and we’ll be right for Easter but it’s also set as back changing the fuel over without the excise. It will now take us a few more days.”

But Loch has fuel and they’d be delighted to see you stop off, ahead of Easter, and during the holiday break.

And if you do pick up a can of Coke to go with your pie and sauce, spare a thought for the service station operators and the mindless mongrels who cost them $30,000 and a whole lot of trouble before walking away with a couple of cans of drink for their efforts.

Burglars also reportedly hit the Loch and Key café in the town the previous week.

If you have dashcam or CCTV video footage from the Loch area around 4am on Tuesday, March 31, you can submit your information by calling Crimestoppers Victoria on 1800 333 000 or by going to the Crimestoppers Vic website at https://www.crimestoppersvic.com.au