Kununurra business owners ‘terrorised’ by primary-school aged kids throwing rocks

A Kununurra eatery may be forced to shut at night while the owner of the town’s ice cream shop refuses to work alone because they are being “terrorised” by primary-school aged children who smash windows, harass staff and steal drinks in front of them. Subway Kununurra owner Rachell Fewster said there had always been unruly youths around town but over the past month it had become so extreme she was forced to shut her business 30 to 40 minutes early up to three times a week. She has had to replace all her windows because they were smashed and cracked by rocks and her awning has been damaged when a ball was kicked through it. “It’s constant. It is getting to the point where they are getting destructive and tormenting all of us and are basically terrorising us,” she said. Meanwhile next door at Kununurra Ice Creamery, owner Lisa Woodhead has had her A-Frame board outside her shop destroyed twice, once by girls who swung it around and then threw it at her window. “It’s a lot of anti-social behaviour, ‘‘ Ms Woodhead said. “They are stealing drinks on a daily basis. They used to be sneaky, now they do it in front of our eyes.” Both business owners said the children looked like they were mostly aged between 7 and 10. Although some looked as young as five while others appeared older, aged between 12 and 14. “It is not all of them, it’s a very small group of kids most of my customers, 99 per cent are amazing,” Ms Woodhead said. “I have to pay a staff member to be here, I won’t allow myself and daughter to be here on our own. The staff member just sits there when it is reasonably quiet but at least she can grab the phone if something is happening.” The Kununurra business owners aren’t the only ones that have fallen victim to a youth crime wave that has swept through the Kimberley this year. The Shire of Derby-West Kimberley have called a special council meeting for Thursday November 10 to discuss the potential closure of a town’s visitor centre amid repeat break-ins and violent incidents. The councillors will examine a proposal to close the Fitzroy Crossing Visitor Centre after several incidents, including one in which a staff member was hit in the face with a rock. In Kununurra, Ms Fewster said the anti-social behaviour was getting so bad businesses would not be able to open at night. “It’s going to come to the point where I’m not going to open. It’s not fair to put staff in that situation. They are trying to do a job and they are getting terrorised. We are constantly on edge.” Ms Fewster said she called the police when she had trouble with the children, “but they are so busy dealing with other stuff. They come when they can but at the moment it is not really possible for them to come every time.” Ms Woodhead said she also regularly calls the police. They had considered hiring a security guard at night for their shops but at $80 an hour it would become unprofitable for them to open. A spokesman for Kununurra Police said they weren’t aware of any anti-social issues at the two shops. They did say however that they did try to do proactive police patrolling around Coles.