Criminals with drones target Childers' farms

Brothers, Gerard and John Russo, who have cane farms at Farnsfield, near Childers, said the community needed a greater police presence with regular patrols in the district.

They have also called for harsher penalties instead of community service for repeat offenders and a 24/7 CIB unit with more detectives stationed in Bundaberg.

Gerard Russo, who had his ute stolen on January 2 from his shed, said the robbery was brazen, but he was not the only person affected.

He said a neighbour had a massive amount of diesel stolen at the weekend.

"They cut their locks and had Gattors (utilities) stolen out of the shed, they just ran them through the roller doors of the locked shed, there's just no respect," he said.

"The reason why the crime is so much is (because) we don't have a police presence. That's the end of the story, we need more cops on the ground...we need the police commissioner to look at what's going on here because it's just rife at the moment. It's like Townsville."

Down the road, Gerard's brother, John, said the recent escalation in crime was around Childers was going to get to the stage where vigilante groups could form to combat what's happening.

"I am fairly pi**ed off about what's been happening and the police just don't seem to have the resources to cover it...it's definitely organised (criminals) and something needs to happen," he said.

"I personally have cameras on my farm, but I am going to upgrade that to put more in. We're (also) looking at a neighbourhood watch type of thing, getting all the farmers together to keep an eye out and report any strange vehicles. We'll be taking number plates of cars that drive past that are suspicious. It's worrying."

Two weeks after it was stolen, Gerard's ute was found dumped in Bundaberg with a different paint job.

Gerard said machinery such as bobcats and tools has also been stolen, but it was mainly older utes.

"They steal them, they clone the number plates that they've got already, it's even happening in daylight or they have drones going, there was a group with drones that were scoping the place before Christmas," he said.

Gerard said a local police contact was needed because by the time they reported a crime to triple 0 or Policelink in Brisbane "these thieves have gone home and eaten breakfast".

"Typical farmers, (we) used to leave keys in the ignition, you'd park a piece of machinery in the shed overnight (with the keys in), (but now) all keys are out, " he said.

"It's the last six to eight weeks, it's over the Christmas period where it's been worse because people are away on holidays...it's a whole new world really and it's caught everyone a bit with their pants down."

John reckons it was not just happening in Childers, but was everywhere where farmers now had to be vigilant for the time.

He said crime in the area had never been as bad before as what it was now.

"What do we do as a community to try and stop this happening?" he asked.

"It's not really our job to protect the community, it's the government, the police, it's their job, it's not our job. It's what we pay taxes for."

In a written response, Police Minister Mark Ryan said the people of Childers and the surrounding district can rest assured police will always relentlessly target those who break the law.

"As a result of a specific government investment in public safety, police are conducting Extreme High Visibility Police Patrols across the Childers region to disrupt and prevent crime," he said.

"These patrols are a crucial element of Operation Whiskey Unison, a high visibility police operation that is producing very tangible results in the Childers region."

Mr Ryan said the government significantly strengthened the penalties for vehicle theft last year.

"And the laws and penalties around trespass on rural properties have also been significantly strengthened," he said.

After a meeting last year, Mr Ryan is again meeting with AgForce officials this week where "no doubt there will be further discussions about these matters".

A Queensland Police Service spokesperson said QPS regularly reviews a range of issues including service demand, available resources, officer safety, emerging crime trends and population growth to ensure optimum service delivery across the Wide Bay Burnett Region.

"While staffing figures will fluctuate from time to time, the QPS has sufficient staff and resources to deliver professional policing services to all Bundaberg and Childers residents and visitors, including city-based businesses," the spokesperson said.

"The Wide Bay Burnett District, which encompasses both the Childers and Bundaberg areas, has the discretion and flexibility to allocate police resources as needed. This borderless model of policing ensures our workforce is agile and adaptable, and not restricted by traditional policing boundaries."