Melbourne families have been left scared for their safety after masked criminals broke into two homes in the dead of night, stealing cars and property while residents were sleeping.
Masked offenders entered a Sandringham home about 3am on Tuesday, stealing a handbag before leaving with two of the residents’ cars.
About two hours later another home in Hampton was broken into with the same things being stolen.
A resident of the Hampton home told9News the thieves gave the middle finger to a security camera as they stole two of his luxury cars.
“They were pretty brazen. I yelled at them, they didn’t seem to care,” he said.
“Having people in your house, invading your privacy and safety of your home’s really disturbing … the kids are really scared, I’m not sure how they’re gonna cope with that.”
Victoria Police said it is believed both residences were unlocked at the time. 9NEWS reported CCTV captured the offenders entering the Hampton home through a cat flap.
Police said Moorabbin Crime Investigation Unit detectives were investigating the matter, and assessing if the two crimes were linked.
Authorities said the offenders were unknown, but one victim told 7NEWS police told them the invaders were “constant reoffenders”.
They added that they felt “very uneasy” and that the burglary was a “big invasion of privacy”.
The state opposition said previous offenders on bail were responsible for a youth crime wave that causes incidents like these.
Liberal MP James Newbury said the Labor government “needs to stop ignoring these serious, serious crimes”.
“It’s one of the worst crimes that can occur to a family to know that someone’s in your home when you’ve got young kids,” he said. “When does it stop?”
Bayside reportedly has the 25th lowest offence rate in the state out of 79 council areas.
A Victorian Government spokesperson said the state government has recorded billions of dollars in funding for the police force but the deployment of resources were a matter for Victoria Police.
“Community safety is our number one priority – which is why we have invested a record $4.5bn in funding to Victoria Police delivering police the resources and tools they need to keep Victorians safe, including funding for more than 3,600 new police officers,” a spokesperson said.
“All Victorians receive a 24 hour police response, seven days a week, wherever they live.
“Police can and will be deployed to where they are needed, when they are needed.
“Operational decisions such as the deployment of resources are a matter for Victoria Police, who put the safety of all Victorians as their top priority.”
Police have asked witnesses or those with information to call Crime Stoppers at 1800 333 000.