This video of a recent ram raid in Australia caught my eye. Perpetrators used a dark-colored SUV to ram into the Berluti Melbourne boutique on Collins Street in early February. The intruders fled with an estimated $75,000 (almost $100K, U.S.) in handcrafted leather goods including handbags and satchels.
The video also detailed a series of thefts in the city’s retail strip in the central business district (CBD) since 2019. They include other boutique fashion houses, a jewelry store and a multi-million dollar heist from a gold company. It was not clear whether any others were ram raids or crash and grabs of other sorts.
So I went on a deeper dive for details. Instead, I found this video of another ram raid. This one on a bike shop less than a week later. It seems there is a short supply of bicycles with the surge in popularity of people riding bikes for commuting and exercise during the pandemic.
Here the store’s video clearly captures a white car backing into the store’s glass front door. Three perpetrators loaded five bikes on top of two cars and flee. These custom bikes can cost upwards of $10 or $15,000.
My search further revealed more ram raid news in Australia just later that same month. 9ews revealed “Fashion boutique Bottega Veneta ram-raided in Melbourne’s CBD”.
It was yet another boutique on Collins Street in Melbourne hit by a black SUV I a crash and grab. This store is an Italian fashion house that also sells leather goods. No estimate of the value of the goods was made.
Just a few days later Perthnow reported “Melbourne CBD Dior store ram raided”. Here a utility coupe was used to ram through the front glass of a Dior store on the same Collins Street. Again luxury goods and handbags were the targets. No value of the stolen goods was estimated.
In each of the stories, there was a significant focus on the types and values of the stolen goods. Underlying this is the damage to the store itself, downtime and lost business also resulting from the crash and grabs.
Call ECI today at 847.949.0134 to learn if perimeter security bollards can be an effective means for preventing ram raids from interrupting your business. Or click below for direct contact information of an email contact form.
