Hamilton Police are urging people to contact them if they see something suspicious after the breaking up of a juvenile burglary ring in the City over recent days.
Detective Sergeant Ricky Thompson of the Hamilton Law Enforcement Team said seven boys aged between 14-15-years-old were arrested in connection with the theft of several cars and 26 residential burglaries over a two week period.
"In addition some of the group were also involved in a break-in of a Tauranga home over the same period," he said.
Mr Thompson said some of the boys had already come to Police attention and were being dealt with by Police, truancy services and social agencies but were so blasé about the repercussions of their offending that they absconded from school while the agencies were discussing their case.
"Their methods allegedly involved identifying a property of interest, doing a door knock, and if nobody answered breaking into the home and stealing valuables.
"Even rest-homes weren't safe with the group stealing a car from a City care facility, residents and staff at a home thought one thief was a resident's grandchild before he made off with a car."
The group's activities came to a halt last Wednesday when officers attending a report of a burglary noticed three cars apparently travelling in convoy and stopped them.
"The car stolen from the rest-home was recovered and it turned out the other vehicles were stolen too, a number of items of property taken in burglaries were recovered and two juveniles and two adults were arrested.
"Not all of the group were involved in each burglary but participants in one would intermingle with others in the group to carry out others," said Mr Thompson.
The group appeared in the Hamilton District and Youth Courts on Thursday and the juveniles have Family Group Conferences scheduled over coming weeks.
While the largest criminal operation carried out by juveniles for some time last week's arrests weren't the only ones with three juveniles currently being interviewed in relation to a burglary of a Claudelands address over the weekend.
"In addition a Police dog tracked four offenders from a Forest Lake burglary in which the youngest offender was 11 and another was 13."
Mr Thompson said some of the most effective tools in targeting youth offending were also some of the most simple.
"If you see people who look like they should be at school hanging around a property or appearing to be up to no good then give Police a call.
"In addition make sure you lock your doors and windows and get to know your neighbours, that way if you see something that doesn't look right it probably isn't and again, give us a call."
Police were first alerted to the group's activities after a resident noticed the school aged boys acting suspiciously around a Hamilton home.
Follow up enquiries resulted in the arrests and the recovery of substantial amounts of property including jewellery and electronics.
Hamilton City Community Services supervisor, Senior Sergeant Lance Tebbutt, said between 23-28 per cent of burglaries between 9am and 5pm are carried out by offenders of school age which is why Police work so closely with partner agencies to address truancy issues.
"In the case of the seven boys linked to the 26 burglaries, each child was absent from school at the time of the offending. Subsequently Police, schools, parents and social service agencies will be meeting again this week to work out a strategy to manage these young people.
"While the bottom line is there is a requirement for parental responsibility in ensuring parents know where their charges are in this case some of the parents are at their wits end with many taking time off work to ensure they are able to account for their child's whereabouts."
Mr Tebbutt said dealing with juvenile offenders falls under Section 4 (F) of the Children and Young Persons and Their families Act 1989.
"The act requires that when a child or young person commits an offence they are held accountable and encouraged to accept responsibility for their behaviour.
"At the same time they need to be dealt with in a way that acknowledges their needs and gives them opportunities to develop responsible and socially acceptable behaviour."
While officers were their to enforce the law and any restrictions placed on young persons who have been through the court process this was only part of the Police's response to youth issues.
"The nationally adopted 'Rock-On' truancy program kicked off in Hamilton and we also run the Big Brothers- Big Sisters programme in which we provided positive role-modelling for young people to fill the gap created by so many of our youths coming from broken homes.
"In addition Police play a big part in the Bluelight project in which positive reinforcement by peer groups is a key objective, it's all about offering positive alternatives to those kids who want to turn a corner or make something of themselves."
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