Hamilton dairy owner exhausted after being burgled three times in three days

A Hamilton dairy has been burgled three times in a row by the same men using the same car - and getting in through the same broken window.

Masters Ave Superette owner Azfar Mohammad says he's now scared for not only himself but his wife and three children as police are still to catch those responsible.

Burglaries and armed robberies are nothing new in his 24 years of ownership - his dairy was targeted three times over July and August this year; and in one of those saw him attacked with a hammer.

Mohammad says the country's laws are too weak on underage offenders - one thief had told him they treated dairy robberies and burglaries like a "fun game".

"One of the kids - he was 14 - told me that it's like a fun game. You go rob the place and run away, police are not catching you, you beat them.

"If the police catch you they will drop them at home. That's their thinking."

Police confirmed the superette was hit late on Thursday night, then again during the early hours of Saturday and Sunday morning.

CCTV footage of the first burglary shows a group of four men arriving in a black Mazda Atenza station wagon before one of them kicks in the window.

They spend less than a minute inside before taking off.

Mohammad said he'd spent more than two hours cleaning up after each incident before waking up and going back to open again.

"It's really hard."

The thieves spend less than a minute inside the store, stealing everything from drinks to food to face masks and cigarettes.

Each time they took cigarettes as well as a mixture of vape and tobacco products, drinks, food - even face masks.

They've regained entry through the same window; which had been reduced to a piece of plywood the last two nights.

Mohammad said it had now got to the point where he was scared, not only for himself but for his wife and three kids.

"I go home at lunchtime to try and get some sleep each day but I can't, knowing that she is here.

"This is my bread and butter."

The building the superette is in - which also houses a takeaway and the Hillcrest library - is owned by the council.

Each time the glass is broken, it's fellow ratepayers who are footing the bill, and his insurance excess that continues to rise.

Once inside, the group scattered around all areas of the dairy.

However, he has no other options at the moment, despite being keen to sell and move on.

"I actually tried to look for other options. I wanted to shut the business, I'm trying to sell this business but there's not many buyers because it's a city council building and their lease.

"They only give a lease every three years at a time, so people aren't keen to buy."

The incidents had also drawn the ire of the local Hillcrest community who were saddened and angered by the news.

"Wtf, masters ave superette robbed 3 days in a row?! That family doesnt deserve this s***," one person wrote on social media. "They're such nice people that own that shop," and "Very hard on owners. Trying to make a living. They were robbed few years back. I think the wife may have got threatened or hurt."

Mohammad said he'd owned the dairy since July 1, 1997.

Asked how many times he'd been burgled or been the victim of an armed robbery, he replied, "Oh, I have really lost count."

As for what they would do tonight, he said he'd be keeping an eye on the CCTV cameras from home.

"I will leave my iPad open and wait for them to come back again. It's only what I can do."

He said after these latest incidents police had responded in five or 10 minutes.

"They came and according to them, they know that the most frustrating thing for police is that they are not allowed to chase them."

Owner Azfar Mohammad has a piece of ply protecting his store until the glass can be replaced after three burglaries in a row. Photo / Belinda Feek

He said after the second burglary he was told by officers that the car they were using was stolen from a Knighton Rd property three weeks ago.

"Police have spotted the car two times in the town but they couldn't catch them. They're young people, and they keep doing it.

"The law must be improved to toughen up for these guys. They are 13, 14, 15 and 16.

"They're smoking, they have girlfriends at that age, they're doing everything, and according to the law, are underage people."

The constant thefts are now impacting on his ability to survive.

"My profit is reducing day to day and is getting really difficult.

"I've got nobody to cry to. If I put my head on anybody's shoulder and cry, it's not going to solve any problem."

Police have been approached for further comment.