Sinister trend that left Melbourne tradie Chris Wall $14,000 out of pocket and losing work he needs to support his family
A young carpenter has been robbed of approximately $14,000 worth of tools he needs to work, severely limiting his ability to earn a living and that of his family.
The cruel blow to Chris Wall’s career and life happened last week when brazen thieves stripped almost all of his tools in a matter of minutes.
Theft of tradesmen’s tools has become an alarming national trend, with the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria noting that such crimes cost Victorian tradies up to $20 million a year.
“They took everything, like my batteries, all my cordless tools, a bag of hand tools and a bunch of other stuff,” said Mr. Wall, who is still an apprentice. Yahoo News.
The resident of the Melbourne suburb of Balwyn discovered what happened when he was about to leave for work at 7am and noticed the toolbox opened and about 90 percent of his tools were gone.
Young carpenter Chris Wall (pictured with his partner Jaimie and their baby, Charlie) has been robbed of approximately $14,000 worth of tools he needs to work, severely limiting his ability to support himself and his family
It only took six to seven minutes for the heartless thieves to search through all his storage bins, throw the tools in the back of their suitcase and drive away (pictured)
After calling the police, he asked his neighbor to view their security footage, which showed how quickly the robbery happened.
He was up and getting ready to go to work when the thieves pounced, completely unaware that his Isuzu D-Max was being stripped of its tools.
It only took six to seven minutes for the heartless thieves to search through all his storage bins, throw the tools in the back of their trunks and drive away.
With baby Charlie and partner Jaimie left to care for, the theft came at a terrible time for the family.
Buying replacement tools has eaten up most of his savings, and he has had to borrow other tools to work.
But there are now a number of jobs he cannot do.
“I can’t take certain jobs because on a lot of sites you have to be a little more autonomous and have all your own stuff,” he said.
Mr Wall has had to borrow money from family and friends, one of whom is a GoFundMe page to help the family.
After being robbed, the tradie found he was far from alone and has heard many stories of similar thefts happening to others, including his former boss, who had his “entire van cleared out.”
The Royal Automobile Club said tradies’ tools are often targeted for theft ‘because they are of high value and easily portable’.
The theft of Chris Wall’s tools from the back of his laptop (pictured) cost the young father around $14,000