Rock-throwing siege scares man, 78

Kerry Dillon and his son Craig have been forced to install plywood boards over windows at Webtraders after they were smashed three times in five months.Photo/Glenn Taylor

The owners of a family business "under siege" by teenagers have installed wooden panels on the shop's windows after three breakages in five months.

On two occasions the glass was smashed with large rocks. It has not been determined what was used to shatter the glass a third time.

Kerry Dillon bought the building in Camberley 18 years ago as a funeral parlour and later converted it to a house and internet sales business called Webtraders. Attached to the shop frontage was an apartment, in which Mr Dillon lived with his son, daughter-in-law and their two children - which meant the attacks felt very personal.

A group of about seven or eight local teenagers, estimated to be aged 14 to 18, are believed to be responsible.

"It's been a progressive thing, at the start they would play around in the open car park and other things have vanished, about four weeks ago we had them break a window and then doors facing Orchard Rd, which are plate glass," Mr Dillon said.

"I'm 78 and was home alone. I heard a bang and saw two shatter marks, I was about 2m from [the glass] when I saw them throw two big stones, they were gripping the fence and they smashed it in my face."

The insurance excess for the Hastings commercial building was about $500. The first repair cost $280, after that $480, and plywood panels were being installed on the main front and side windows after another incident on Friday.

They were also looking at replacing some of the windows with perspex, as a way to reinforce them.

"It's not the money, we are actually quite frightened; imagine someone smashing the windows and then not knowing when it was coming again, it makes you uptight, nervous."

In Friday's attack, the main panel of a big patio door was smashed, a side window also broken and poker chips were stolen off a table inside.

The family had also heard of windows being broken at Heretaunga School and Lindisfarne College, leading them to believe they were not the sole victims.

The family did not report the first break, but were concerned police had not taken fingerprints at the two most recent incidents.

A police spokeswoman confirmed officers attended the scene, but had found no evidence that could be used to identify those responsible.

She advised speaking with neighbours and asking them to keep an eye out for suspicious behaviour, but said such incidents were not widespread in Hastings.