By Laura Wakely
SEVEN small knives, a wooden baton and a metal hammer were among the weapons confiscated by police during an operation in Sunshine last week.
Police patrolled the area in and around Sunshine railway station as part of Operation Safe Spring, a five-week transport safety operation running across Victoria.
Transit Safety Division Acting Senior Sergeant Arthur Secoulidis said 30 members took part in last Tuesday’s operation, in which nine weapons were confiscated with the assistance of four walk-through metal detectors and seven hand-held body scanners.
Each of the persons caught with weapons received a $1000 fine. Acting Sen Sgt Secoulidis said police were trying to reduce weapons and assaults, while increasing perceptions of safety on the public transport system.
He denied the Sunshine station was a “really bad spot” for crime and said similar operations had already been carried out around transport hubs in Footscray and Dandenong.
“We’re just trying to send a message out there that there’s a few people that carry knives that are ruining it for everybody else,” Acting Sen Sgt Secoulidis said.
“We have a zero tolerance to carrying knives on the public transport system.”
He said police were “reassured” by the small numbers of weapons found for the 170 random searches carried out on the day.
“If you carry a weapon, one day you might end up using it, or it could get turned and used against you,” he said.
“The consequences are simply not worth it,” he said.
Acting Sen Sgt Secoulidis said public transport was “very safe”, he said his top tips for safe travel were for commuters to get into a carriage with other people, try not to park your car too far from the station if you’re getting home at night and to use common sense.
He said a small number of people were also arrested for drugs possession.
