By XAVIER SMERDON
HOONS and vandals in the western suburbs will have nowhere to hide with the arrival of an Australian-first crime tackling tool.
The Hoon Cam Car is an unassuming vehicle that has been fitted out with thousands of dollars worth of hidden cameras.
At the request of community groups or residents it can be parked in problem areas to catch hoons and people doing graffiti in the act.
Director of Community Against Crime, the group behind the idea, Tim Payne, told Star the car was created in response to constant complaints about hoons from residents in the Wyndham area.
“The problem is so bad in this area now that people don’t know what to do,” Mr Payne said.
“Just the other day in Hogans Rd in Hoppers Crossing a hoon drove through the front of someone’s house.
“This isn’t about catching people that don’t indicate when they turn, it’s about catching the really bad hoon behaviour.”
Any footage captured by the cameras is sent directly to the police as evidence and it can even be viewed live from a remote location, so if an offence is taking place in the vicinity of the car police can potentially be dispatched to the area immediately.
The car has also been fitted with Visiondrive cameras, special surveillance cameras that can film while the car is driven.
Mr Payne said the project, which has become so popular it has already been booked out for the next month, had taken six months to become a reality.
Almost every council within the western suburbs has also expressed interest in using the Hoon Cam Car to catch vandals.
“The idea of using a vehicle came about simply because we had so many people contacting us and asking for help,” Mr Payne said.
“We are not vigilantes because we don’t make contact with any members of the community and we don’t take the law into our own hands, we simply pass the footage onto the police for them to use.”
Damian Marrett, a former police officer who spent 16 years with the force, said the Hoon Cam Car had the potential to stop crimes and even save lives.
“This technology will make a huge difference to the community and go towards making resident’s lives safer,” Mr Marrett said.
Community Against Crime specifically chose a cheap looking car for the project because they did not want it to draw attention when it is being used.
Any community group or group of six residents or more can book the car to tackle hoons or graffiti.
For more information visit www.communityagainstcrime.com.au
