By GEORGIA WESTGARTH
THEIR home was one of the last to be broken into and burgled within the same 24 hours, in a spate of home invasions that rocked Casey.
But for this Berwick family it was the home where thieves cleaned up.
Entering through a broken doggy door, this gang of youths, allegedly including members as young as 12 years old, took presents, cards filled with money and vouchers, mobile phones, wallets, keys, a sound system, a computer, alcohol and most importantly a Nikon digital camera.
But they didn’t steal the family’s cars.
The Berwick family of four, who wishes to remain anonymous, had celebrated an event 12 years in the making on Saturday 20 February.
“My husband and I renewed our vows during the day at our home, we had family and friends attend, some from overseas and we had our original celebrant,” she said.
But the special day will always be remembered for something very different.
“My husband and some friends stayed up with a fire going until about 1.30am, my husband had locked all the doors and we had friends sleep over in the downstairs spare room.”
“During the night my friends and I both heard some noises, but we both thought the other had woken up.”
That morning she said was meant to be about watching the ceremony footage on their camera, opening presents, tidying up and reading the cards, but instead, it was “horrific”.
The story is exactly as Casey police have been telling it for several months.
Keys left in the inside door lock, handbag hung up in the kitchen and valuables sprawled across the table.
But due to the day’s events, the valuables stolen totalled more than $5000, and the footage and photos captured on their Nikon digital camera were “irreplaceable” she said.
Six people including a 10 and seven-year-old child were asleep upstairs during the invasion.
And it’s the bold and brazen break-in, which occurred in the early hours of Sunday morning, around 5.30am to 6am, which bothers the Berwick parents the most.
“When we realised what had happened that morning, I burst into tears and went into shock, which quickly wore off into anger,” she said.
“It’s horrific that someone thought it was in their right to walk into our home, take what they wanted and walk out again, and we’ve worked so hard for what we have, it’s heart-breaking.”
The thieves left the laundry door wide open and drank leftover bottles of wine and dumped them in the adjacent park land.
“Police think they let themselves out the back door – bows from the presents were on the ground in the carport and I think they left taking swigs out of the bottles,” she said.
Distraught at the fact strangers rummaged through her family’s belongings, the angry mother of two said she’d never been burgled in her 17 years in the same Berwick home, but will now make some security changes.
“We are completely diligent now, keys aren’t on show, we are getting security cameras and one of our neighbours is doing the same – even if it doesn’t stop them at least we’ll have footage of them,” she said.
Keys to their business premises, house and car were found by a resident in a suburban rubbish bin.
“Endeavour Hills police were involved in getting the keys back to us, our keys were dumped with wrapping and gift card packaging,” she said.
The couple said a neighbour in their street had taken a photo of youths, some Caucasian and some dark skinned in about four cars, on the morning after the break in, about 7am.
“He said he thought it looked like a drug deal and took the photo to get the number plates – we have heard the offenders are a part of a larger gang from Dandenong,” they said.
“Until it happens to you nobody listens.”
The pair said they weren’t aware of the extent of the home invasions throughout Casey until they called police that morning.
“We were one of around eight places broken into in 24 hours, the police were amazing throughout, when I called police they said ‘we’ve had a busy morning’, they had been going from home to home.”
At least 19 teenagers have been processed by police since the spate of home burglaries began. Twelve have been remanded in custody.
