Farm vandalism: Brazen thieves smash tractor windows and steal fuel in a ‘disgraceful’ act

A pair of well-known Eradu farmers have been left devastated and furious after vandals smashed the windows on three of their tractors, causing thousands of dollars damage at the busiest time of the year. Fiona and Liam Mann said they believed the vandals struck between 7pm and 8pm on December 9, using a field bin handle which had been picked up from a bin just metres away. Ms Mann said a friend driving noticed lights on some of the tractors just after 7pm, and phoned the couple to let them know there were strangers on their property. The incident occurred in a gravel turnaround area in a paddock located on Valentine Road and less than 1km from the Geraldton-Mount Magnet Highway. The Massey Ferguson, Chamberlain and Caterpillar Challenger Tractor had only been parked up for two days after the couple finished harvest on December 7. The Manns had planned to move the three tractors just one day after the damage occurred after finishing harvest two days earlier. “This is the first time we have had vandalism or anything stolen (from the farm), and it is shocking this happened so close to the main highway,” Ms Mann said. “It is really upsetting, it is just so much hassle to clean up and get the insurance sorted. “It was completely random and completely pointless.” The thieves also siphoned diesel from the Chamberlain tractor, and appear to have tried to do similar to the other machinery but failed. Ms Mann took to Twitter on Sunday to vent her frustration, saying the pair were “totally gutted” and shocked the “brazen” act had occurred when it was still daylight. “Stealing fuel is one thing, smashing the glass is a **** move,” she wrote, also inferring that the couple’s insurance costs were likely to rise. Members of WA’s agricultural industry were quick to respond to the pictures posted on Twitter, with those that responded labelling it an “absolute disgrace”, and a “totally disgusting” and “selfish” act by people who were a “waste of space”. Geraldton police visited the farm one day after the incident, on December 10, to take photographs and start an investigation. While the theft of fuel, vehicles and livestock is relatively common in WA, it is anecdotally less common for tractors and machinery to be damaged by vandals.