In the wake of a spike in carjackings and home invasions across Melbourne, the Victorian government last year announced it will introduce legislation to create tough new penalties and statutory minimum sentences for aggravated carjacking and aggravated home invasion offenders.
On Thursday, Premier Daniel Andrews confirmed the courts will be banned from using Community Correction Orders (CCO) for those offences.
Victorian judges will now have to send offenders convicted of aggravated home invasions and carjackings to prison under reforms being introduced by the state government.
The Indian community has welcomed this announcement.
Many members of the Indian community have been victims of aggravated house burglary and carjacking in Melbourne.
Pritpal Singh was sleeping in his house in Tarneit in Melbourne’s west when a gang of four armed robbers broke into his house in September 2016.
Mr Singh, his wife and 17-month-old son were asleep in their bedroom when a gang broke the glass of their rear window and ransacked their kitchen before fleeing with the family's car, money and other valuables.
Another Indian resident in Melbourne, Paresh Parmar from Tarneit was attacked by five young boys on his doorstep in July 2016.
Paresh Parmar was attacked by a gang of five young boys on last Wednesday, outside his home in Tarneit. Source: Supplied
Williams Landing resident Ritesh Chandan’s family of six was asleep when a group of four teenagers broke into his house.
Neighbourhood Watch groups were created online to share information and alert other members as fear and concern grew among the community.
Jasvinder Sidhu, one of the founding members of Safer Wyndham Group, said he welcomed the harsher penalties for offenders.
Jasvinder Sidhu Source: Supplied
“Too often we see offenders walk free despite offending many times," he said.
"Police do a great job to catch them but they get away. So there was a community expectation that such offenders should go to jail.”
Mr Sidhu hopes the move will help deter potential offenders.
“We see stories of offenders using their social media to tell their followers that despite committing a crime they were freed," he said.
"People were feeling as if victims had no rights and offenders were given favourable treatment. So this move is excellent."
