Victims of crime share experiences with Peter Dutton

Peter Dutton hosted a community roundtable for victims of crime in Melbourne's east on Tuesday, April 2, 2025. Video via AAP

Transcript

00:00For some of the victims of crime, it's obviously traumatic to be able to talk about the experience.

00:07For many people, it can be one of the most life-changing events to find somebody in your

00:13bedroom, to know that somebody's been rummaging around through your belongings or through

00:18things that you really cherish.

00:20And for businesses, a disruption to business, an attack on a business which results in somebody

00:29just losing their confidence to not be able to work the night shift or the afternoon shift.

00:34There are so many ways in which crime can negatively impact them.

00:37I think it's incredibly important as a community that we come together to try and hear some

00:43of the experiences.

00:45My name's Harry Hutchinson and I run a menswear business in Berwick.

00:51I have been broken into and robbed nine times in the last nine months.

00:56That includes a couple of attempted robberies.

00:59I was assaulted once in the store.

01:02My senior female staff member, she was threatened to be run over one day when she chased after

01:08the perpetrator and come in and stole a number of items of clothing.

01:13She raced out after him, stood behind his car, wouldn't let him out and said,

01:17if you don't move, I'm going to run you over.

01:20I'm mad.

01:21I grabbed hold of him and said, I'll get back in the store.

01:24There's no fear.

01:26You know, they have no fear of this.

01:28And the impact it has on your life, it's terrible.

01:32I slept in my store until 6 o'clock in the last one.

01:37Every night, 6 o'clock, the robberies, I have what I call a get on close.

01:43So when my alarm goes off and it's the laundry company, I get back to my store in seven minutes.

01:51And I still have those clothes there even today.

01:56How I can get over it, I don't know.

01:58Peter mentioned mental health issues.

02:01I believe I'm an example of that.

02:04And that's what I got to live with.

02:06The police did a fantastic job trying to catch the perpetrators.

02:10They were there within minutes.

02:11Sometimes they were there before me.

02:13They had the dog squad there.

02:15And there's break-ins.

02:16They come back anywhere from 2 o'clock in the morning to 5 o'clock.

02:21How can you stop it, I don't know.