Crime Gangs Suspected In Line Cuts

Sun Herald

Sunday December 31, 2006

By MICHAEL BLAXLAND

ORGANISED crime gangs may be responsible for vandalism that cut telephone, internet and data connections around Port Stephens yesterday.

Police said criminals could be cutting the cables and then descending on busy stores to use stolen credit cards.

Transactions would have to be put through manually, meaning the authenticity of the cards or credit balances could not be checked.

It was the third time this month that optic fibre cables had been deliberately slashed near the Anna Bay exchange.

Telecommunications were cut to the whole Port Stephens peninsula, a popular tourist destination, between 11.30am and 5pm.

More than 10,000 customers were affected. A similar number were also cut off on December 9 and 20.

Lower Hunter duty officer Chief Inspector Greg Lindsell said Salamander Bay shopping centre was one that might have been hit by thieves yesterday.

Telstra Country Wide area general manager Chris Cusack said it was a deliberate criminal attack.

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