Secondhand swoop

By Lia Bichel
POLICE detected both minor and serious offences when they swarmed over 60 secondhand dealers and pawnbrokers across Greater Dandenong last week.
About 60 police officers, in plain clothes and uniform and on foot and in unmarked cars, conducted Operation Vaults on 18 and 19 August.
Sergeant Stuart Freeman said the operation aimed to find any stolen property to assist in solving crime, and to return stolen property to any victims of theft.
“Basically, stolen property sometimes goes through secondhand dealers. Most of our dealers are legitimate and just trying to run a business, and they don’t always detect the fact that some goods are stolen,” he said. “But there are a small handful of secondhand dealers who are less vigilant in ensuring they know where an item is from and they take it regardless.”
Police officers also took into consideration all relevant offences against the Second Hand Dealers and Pawnbrokers Act 1989.
The Second Hand Dealers and Pawnbrokers Act 1989 is legislation designed to impose stringent requirements on those who carry on the lawful business of dealing in second hand and pawned goods within Victoria.
Sgt Freeman said there were many licensed premised that were meeting the requirements of the act but there were some who were not.
The offences ranged from minor administrative breaches to more serious offences, where owners were not complying with the act in relation to the storage and recording of secondhand goods.
He said no charges have been laid yet.By identifying any breaches of legislation, police aimed not only to educate dealers to prevent any further offences, but also to prevent any opportunity for unlawful associations to develop between dealers and people trafficking in stolen goods.
They anticipated that the operation would assist in reducing the overall rate of burglaries, thefts and robberies committed within the Greater Dandenong and surrounding area, and play a significant role in the general reduction in crime.
Sgt Freeman urged any victims of theft who believed a secondhand store or pawnbroker might possess their stolen items to contact their local police station.