A soccer club in Bethania has taken a collaborative approach to solving crime on its grounds that did not involve police.
Queensland Police data found more than 700 incidents of property damage happened around Bethania in the last quarter. Bethania Rams Football Club could add a bunch of others to that total, if they decided to report.
Instead, they resolved their latest hit of targeted vandalism on club property by working with the parents of the children responsible.
By usual standards, the most recent school holiday period was quiet for the club in dealing with the issue.
“This hasn’t been as bad as previous years,” a Bethania Rams volunteer, who wished to be unnamed, said.
“But it’s six of one, half a dozen of the other – it just depends on what they want to destroy.”
The acts have come in dribs and drabs – sometimes weekly.
It could be little tags of graffiti on the bleachers that build up over time to become an eyesore, or the odd ceiling lights that are broken with force, all the way up to larger, more costly strikes.
One of the most senseless acts came recently when club volunteers arrived to find the teens had defecated in front of the bathroom doors.
“Who does that?” the club member said.
Sensor club lights for the canteen porch area are only three weeks old after the offenders destroyed the last set.
The club mowers have been moved to a separate storage area to stop vandals from taking them out and ripping up the football field.
Dead locks have had to be replaced to the canteen, dressing rooms, and bathrooms to prevent further damage and food and drink from being stolen.
Club administration has since confirmed they have sorted the issue by working through it with parents of the kids involved, following a callout they put on social media asking for help.
These kinds of petty incidents have come in droves over the last quarter. Queensland Police data from its online crime map shows a total of 720 vandalism cases have been reported from October 27 to January 26.
Incidents happened most on Saturdays between 2pm and 10pm.
The crime rate started to fall once the peak of 276 incidents was reached on December 21.
Reporting incidents is always the best approach, according to Woodlands Neighbourhood Watch member Sharon Hamilton.
“If you see something happening, don’t assume someone is going to report it,” she said.
“If people are putting things on Facebook, then it might only be one person who’s reported the incident, whereas if police get 10 reports of the same incident they’ll likely send a car.
“If they only get one report of an incident – depending on what jobs they have – they might not come out.”
