Truck thieves target Peter Horne Transport in a move the VTA says is becoming a semi-regular occurrence against operators
By Ruza Zivkusic | May 2, 2011
Victoria Police is appealing for help to find a truck and trailer stolen from a transport storage yard in Victoria.
A Kenworth prime mover and a trailer belonging to Peter Horne Transport were taken from the company’s Wallan yard yesterday morning.
The company’s two John Deere tractors were also stolen. They were later found in Derrimut near Melbourne.
Owner Peter Horne says he is unsure why anyone would want to steal his vehicles.
“I would like to think I’ve got no enemies that would want to upset my business that much but you just don’t know,” he says.
“I’m only speculating. I know it’s competitive and that these things probably do happen and that people do sabotage other people’s business. But I don’t know whether that is the case in this situation as I’ve been doing this for a fair while and I’ve never had any dramas before.”
Police are looking for a 2004 green, gold and silver coloured T604 truck with South Australian registration PHT 005. The vehicle has Peter Horne Transport written on the door. The trailer has a South Australian registration number of of PHT 004.
Horne, who has been transporting farming machinery from Victoria to South Australia for 27 years, says the six-year-old truck – now worth $300,000 – is highly recognisable.
“They would have to repaint it because it’s a fairly distinctive colour and it’s well known. We have been around for a long time so the trucks are well known, so I would say they pinched it to do something else by the sound of it,” he says.
“There were 20 other trucks in the same storage yard and there were two others damaged.”
Victorian Transport Association (VTA) Deputy CEO Neil Chambers says truck thefts are becoming a “semi-regular” occurrence.
“It’s because they’re worth a lot of money. A prime mover can be anywhere between $150,000 to $300,000 depending how old it is,” Chambers says.
“Owners need to keep them secure and have them insured like any other business asset.”
Anyone who may have information about the theft is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.