Calls For Increased Police Resources Following Maryland Robbery

BY MADELAINE MCNEILL

Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery will write to Police Minister Troy Grant to request more resources for local police services following an armed robbery at Maryland Tavern last night.

The latest in a string of robberies saw four armed men enter the venue just after 10:30pm, threatening staff before making off with a sum of cash. They were arrested a short time later.

Extra patrols in Wallsend have had a positive impact on the community in recent months, but Sonia Hornery says local police are struggling with a lack of staff and resources.

The MP says last night's work was down to the quick work of police officers but suggested the result could have been different had the officers not been nearby.

"You can imagine if the police are responding to a crime in Stockton and they need to respond to a major assault in the Maryland area, that's a long way for them to travel."

This is not the first time Ms Hornery has contacted the Police Minister about this issue, which she believes isn't being taken seriously.

"Over the last several rounds of allocations, the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie commands have been granted negligible staff increases while the area continues to grow in population," Ms Hornery said.

"I call on the Minister for Police to take a long, hard look at the Government's police staffing and resource allocation priorities."

The four men involved in last night's robbery were scheduled to appear at Newcastle Local Court today.

Image source: abc.net.au

Wallsend crime back in parliament

BY JARROD MELMETH

Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery will today move a Notice of Motion in the State Parliament calling on the Police Minister to properly resource local Police Districts, following a reported increase in crime.

The notice of motion comes off the back of the latest Productivity Commission Report which shows police spending per person across NSW has been slashed by over $50 million since 2012/13.

In January, Ms Hornery held a meeting with local businesses after business owners reported an increase in criminal activity in the area and a number of shops were targeted by criminals.

Ms Hornery said the local Police Force is continually being asked to do more with less, as local Police Districts experience chronic staff shortages.

"The Wallsend electorate sits on the fringe of three different local Police Districts and has been neglected when it comes to having resources allocated.

"The Minister must explain why the NSW Government is failing to deliver on the promised increase in officer numbers and why it is failing to invest in the future of our Police Force," Ms Hornery said.

Police Minister Troy Grant told Macquarie Radio the decrease in funding is due to a decrease in crime.

However, Shadow Police Minister Guy Zangari said the government needs to fund for the future.

"If the government falls asleep at the wheel, there will be an increase in crime. It is as simple as that.

"What we are asking is a commitment for more funding, and more frontline police officers so that NSW does not see a spike in crime in the near future. This is about future-proofing our community," Mr Zangari said.

PCYC Funding for Lake Macquarie

BY JARROD MELMETH

The Police Citizens Youth Club at Lake Macquarie has received a share in almost $143,000 in funding for Youth Diversionary Projects.

The Lake Macquarie initiative is set to support at-risk youth by combining supervised recreational activities and educational workshops with evening meals and bus transport home.

The funding will also employ a specialist youth worker for the PCYC Club in Windale for a year to develop and deliver structured programs and will provide the club with entertainment facilities, including air hockey and a pool table.

NSW Minister for Police Troy Grant said the diversionary programs will take the idle time away from young people who would normally be getting up to mischief.

"We partner with government and non-government agencies to develop programs to divert young people from the criminal justice system.

"Having worked in the Lake Macquarie area Detectives office at Charlestown, I knew the area well and for a long time, it has had some socioeconomic and youth crime problems," Mr Grant said.

Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter Scot MacDonald said the programs will provide a supportive environment to engage at-risk youth to keep them off the streets.

"Around that Windale area, people would like to think that they have got the opportunity to engage in positive activities, good networks and good mentors.

"It provides a place for people who are having trouble at home to go and talk to some adults or their friends who are going through similar growing up challenges.

"Kids at that age need support and that is why I think it is very important that we do not overcategorize every child at that age as an issue or a problem, but sometimes you just need that little bit of positive mentoring," Mr MacDonald said.

Lake Macquarie PCYC. Source: PCYC Facebook.

BREAKING! Reward Increased In A Bid To Solve Lake Macquarie Double Murder

BY IAN CROUCH

 The state government has increased the reward for information over the 2008 murder of a couple at Caves Beach as a fresh inquest begins in Newcastle today into their deaths.

The bodies of 50-year-old Robert Pashkuss and 41-year-old Stacey McMaugh were found inside a Macquarie Grove home at about midday on Sunday 6 January 2008 by Ms McMaugh's teenage son.

Despite exhaustive inquiries by detectives from Strike Force Chuter, the crime remains unsolved.

NSW Minister for Justice and Police, Troy Grant has today announced the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible has been increased from $100,000 to $250,000.

A Coronial Inquest into the deaths of Mr Pashkuss and Ms McMaugh is due to resume today. Previous hearings have been held in March and June of this year.

Robert Pashkuss and Stacey McMaugh