Concerned father spends thousands on home security amid crime spike

The man, who lives in the city's east and wished to remain anonymous, said he'd lived in Warrnambool for about a decade and remembered the days when he didn't have to lock up his home or car overnight.

But he said he'd noticed a significant spike in suspicious behaviour in his neighbourhood since about 2019.

The man showed The Standard CCTV footage from his home which appeared to show people lurking around his and neighbouring houses.

In one video a man can be seen looking through the man's letterbox.

The videos have been passed on to Victoria Police.

The man said he set up the security cameras about five years ago after his teenage daughter heard someone tapping on the window about 10pm.

He said two years later the camera captured two people walking up and down either side of the street in the middle of the night, trying the handles of cars and entering those that were left unlocked.

The man said he'd since upgraded the system and had also paid for a security gate and door, with the financial bill in the thousands.

The Standard has repeatedly reported thefts from cars or homes left unlocked across the city, including three in the north overnight on July 15, 2024.

Vehicle and contents thefts have spiked in Victoria with more than 21,400 vehicle thefts, or attempted thefts, recorded in the 12 months to March 2024 according to Victoria's Crime Statistics Agency.

The man said he had fortunately not fallen victim to thieves but he knew neighbours in his tight-knit street had.

"About three months ago my neighbour had e-bikes stolen," he said.

"It seems our street gets targeted every few weeks."

The man said in the footage there were often suspicious-looking people walking in pairs and holding a rag, which he suspected was to avoid leaving fingerprints on the car doors they attempted to steal from.

"In one (recording) there's a guy who looks right up to our camera and is not even phased," he said.

"How much longer until someone tries to break into our home? My wife is scared, she is worried."

The man said it was disappointing he had to go to such extreme measures to protect his home.

"When we first moved to Warrnambool you never heard of this happening," he said.

"We used to leave our garage door unlocked all night and you wouldn't flinch but after noticing some shifty stuff happening, you just can't.

"Maybe it's cost-of-living pressures and people are just desperate."

In 2023 Detective Senior Constable Wayne Ryan, of the Warrnambool police crime investigation unit, said all residents should review their security arrangements and at least lock all doors and windows before they left their homes, including their garages.

He said it was now far cheaper to install security cameras.

Warrnambool electrician Alex Pye said all jobs were different but setting up one motion-activated camera to a mobile telephone could cost as little as $500.