A thief has escaped with a load of one dollar coins after he broke into Telarah Bowling Club.
Police are reviewing security footage taken at the Clark Street club about 3am yesterday, when a man smashed a back glass door and entered the premises.
The club’s secretary manager Joanne Henderson told the Mercury that the offender opened five poker machines and took coins from inside.
She said break-ins had occurred at the club previously, but there had not been any incidents in about two years.
“A panel of glass was smashed, the perpetrator entered the building and was on-site for approximately five minutes,” Ms Henderson said.
“Minor damage was done to our gaming room.
“We believe some one dollar coins were taken.”
Ms Henderson said she did not want to comment on the club’s procedures and policies regarding the handling of cash.
No one was at the premises when the incident occurred and the smashed door was repaired yesterday morning.
The incident comes after several break-ins at Maitland Park Bowling Club in recent months.
Central Hunter acting crime manager Detective Inspector Mitch Dubojski urged anyone with information about the incident to contact Maitland police on 4934 0200 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
He said gaming machines were attractive to would-be thieves because of the possibility that they contained cash.
“It seems like they are an attraction for offenders to force entry,” Inspector Dubojski said.
“Generally, the security at these places is quite significant.”
The incident at the club was the latest in a string of thefts across the region in recent days.
A man in his 20s entered a Gillieston Heights home through an unlocked front door and assaulted the 54-year-old female occupant on Sunday night before he fled the scene with the contents of her wallet.
Then, a man armed with a syringe stole a small amount of cash from an East Maitland video store in broad daylight on Monday afternoon.
