Pāpāmoa residents ‘terrorised’ by people throwing rocks at homes

Pāpāmoa residents are being “terrorised” by people throwing rocks at their homes, causing thousands of dollars of damage and smashing a window, which “sounded like a bomb” as it broke.

Every night this week, victim Brendon Burchell has been sitting outside his home “freezing” until midnight, hoping to catch the rock-throwing perpetrators he believes are using the nearby council walkway as an “escape route”.

A pensioner living nearby said she was left shaken and facing a repair bill after someone threw a rock through her bathroom window at about 11.30pm.

The pair are now calling on Tauranga City Council to install a security camera and lighting at the walkway to deter the vandalising behaviour.

‘Four big stones thrown at my house’

Burchell told the Bay of Plenty Times he had lived at his Santa Monica Drive home for 24 years near a council walkway that connects to Percy Rd.

“It’s always been a bit of an issue, but I think more so recently, things have escalated.”

On June 28, Burchell said a Matariki event was held in Pāpāmoa, attracting many people to his neighbourhood and using the walkway.

Pāpāmoa resident Brendon Burchell says his home has been vandalised by people using the council walkway near his home. Photo / Megan Wilson

That night, “I had four big stones thrown at my house”.

He said two hit his van parked in his driveway and caused about $4000 worth of damage as the bonnet needed replacing.

Other stones had hit his garage door also causing damage, he said.

He planned to make an insurance claim but would have to pay a $700 excess.

Since Matariki, he said his home had been targeted three or four more times by people throwing rocks.

Burchell said it felt like he was being “terrorised”.

‘Not worth living here anymore’

Burchell - who lives alone - said he was “not a high earner” and the financial toll was “definitely starting to mount”.

“From Monday, all of this week, I’ve sat outside on a chair … behind my fence waiting to see if these guys return.

“I just literally can’t afford this anymore. It’s got to that point where I’ve had to take drastic measures to stop this from happening.

“I’ve sat out there until about midnight each night literally freezing.”

He said he was “driven by paranoia that another stone will come flying through my window”.

Burchell said he had called the police each time a rock had been thrown at his property.

Burchell said he had reached the point where “I just want to get away from this”.

“This is not worth living here anymore.”

The walkway in Pāpāmoa connects Percy Rd and Santa Monica Drive. Photo / Megan Wilson

Burchell said he had security cameras installed on Thursday, which cost $2500.

He said the main reason for installing them was because, in his view, “the police [are] just not going to be quick enough to get these guys”.

He also believed police should have policed the Matariki event to deter crime.

Burchell said he would like the council to install a security camera and lighting at the walkway, which was “pitch black” at night.

“I think it would go a long way to deterring this sort of behaviour.”

Burchell said motorbikes and motorised scooters were “racing up there at times”. People also loitered in the walkway and left shopping trolleys on his lawn.

He wrote to former Tauranga Commission chairwoman Anne Tolley to voice his concerns.

Her reply - sighted by the Bay of Plenty Times - said it was not the council’s policy to light walkways and “there is no allocated budget to do this”.

Burchell said he had also recently written to just-elected mayor Mahé Drysdale.

Window ‘shatters’ after stone thrown

A neighbour, who did not want to be named for privacy reasons, said her bathroom window was broken by someone throwing a stone on Sunday at about 11.30pm.

She was watching TV when she heard it.

“It sounded like a bomb,” the pensioner said.

A Pāpāmoa resident's window was broken by someone throwing a stone through it.

“That’s a safety glass – and it just shatters.”

The incident left her “shaking” and she called the police who went to her home.

She estimated the cost to fix the window would be about $500 to $600. She would have to pay for it because her insurance excess was $1000.

She agreed a camera and lighting should be installed at the walkway.

Council and police respond

A council spokeswoman said its team had been contacted once about the walkway between Percy St and Santa Monica Drive.

Reports of antisocial behaviour were a police matter, the spokeswoman said.

The council was also asked if it would install a security camera and lighting at the walkway.

A police spokeswoman said the police received five reports on July 21 relating to stones and rocks being thrown at properties in the Santa Monica Drive area.

Officers attended at the time; however, there were no available lines of inquiry, she said.

Subsequently, the police received a further report from one of the residents who had initially been affected, outlining a further occurrence, she said.

“In response to these incidents, police have conducted additional patrols in the area.”

Megan Wilson is a health and general news reporter for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post. She has been a journalist since 2021.