Police are investigating a spate of burglaries in Greater Dandenong, including a home invasion attack on this 80-year-old man from Noble Park.
By Nicole Williams
A STRING of burglaries in Greater Dandenong are keeping the police on their toes.
Detectives from Dandenong Crime Investigation Unit are investigating four unlinked burglaries in the past week.
Last week, the Star reported on a Noble Park North stroke victim who was attacked after opening his door to two men at 11.30pm on Sunday 29 January.
The men punched and kicked the 80-year-old man and fled the property empty handed when he managed to activate a key-ring alarm.
Detective Senior Constable Dean Marchant from Dandenong Crime Investigation Unit said police were investigating a number of leads in the case and were still appealing for information or witnesses.
Since then there has been another incident in which a 21-year-old man was forced to flee from his Springvale home when he opened the door to a gang of five or six men who forced their way through the front door at 10.30pm on Thursday.
The men, described as African appearance, ransacked theWhitworth Avenue home and made off with two laptops and two cameras.
At 10.30am on Monday, a woman alone in her Noble Park North home spied four men fleeing her Bakers Road house with a stolen safe.
Police arrested a 40-year-old Dandenong North man and recovered the stolen safe nearby.
The other three offenders fled the scene.
Also on Monday, a 25-year-old Langwarrin man was arrested at 1.30pm after he was disturbed ransacking a house in Turner Close, Springvale.
The man allegedly broke into the house while the female resident was home sick from work but she disturbed the man and he fled empty handed.
He was caught by police nearby.
Both men were charged with burglary.
Det Sen Cons Marchant said it was an abnormally high number of incidents within a week but detectives did not believe they were linked.
Police are appealing for witnesses or anyone with information about any of the outstanding burglaries to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
