By BLAKE METCALF-HOLT AND KATRINA BRANDON
A SHINING light of Yinnar is being threatened with permanent closure under its current owners after the ATM ram raid of January 6 at the town’s general store.
Due to the damage, the store is facing a six-month closure.
The building’s main supporting central pillar has been twisted by seven centimetres, which, if the front door was to open, would see the roof cave in.
“I think I’m more flat now than before because the reality has sunk in that we could be closed for up to six month and that can kill a business,” store owner Theresia Gailberger told the Express.
Ms Gailberger and Stuart Booth of Yinnar Bakery, Coffee Shop and Groceries were awoken in the early hours of the morning, being told that their business had been rammed into repeatedly and that the public ATM had been ripped out of the front of the store.
According to Ms Gailberger, the incident occurred around 1.39am (on Tuesday, January 6), when the building was rammed five times. Thieves allegedly tied a chain around the ATM machine and towed it out, before putting it onto the back of a Mitsubishi Trident and driving off in two cars, leaving a third behind.
The whole ordeal took 10 minutes.
Police arrived swiftly just before 2am thanks to many concerned neighbours phoning triple zero due to the commotion.
The local business owner said the pair was devastated upon realising what had happened, causing an estimated $200,000 worth of damage.
The incident capped off a series of ATM ramraids across the state dating back to November, with two men recently arrested in relation to the alleged crimes, including nine burglaries and attempted burglaries.
A 34-year-old Drouin man was taken into custody three days after the Yinnar theft on Friday, January 9 and charged with 11 offences from previous incidents.
He was remanded to appear before Latrobe Valley Magistrates’ Court on April 7.
The second arrest was a 31-year-old Dandenong man on Monday, January 12, who is set to face the Dandenong Magistrates’ Court on February 4.
Police revealed that alleged stolen tow trucks were used to force entry into the businesses, including dismantling ATMs located on the walls outside.
A failed attempt in Korumburra on November 6, 2025 started the crime spree, when thieves unsuccessfully tried stealing the public ATM, however, significant damage to WEF Accounting on Commercial Road was still sustained.
Another eight incidents and thefts took place over the next two months, and was brought to an end in the Latrobe Valley.
A total of four ATMs were stolen from Fairfield, Bentleigh East, Baxter and Yinnar.
Detectives also seized seven allegedly stolen tow trucks as part of the investigation, five of which were left behind at the scenes.
Ms Gailberger said that the perpetrators rammed the Yinnar shopfront up to five times, which has caused substantial damage to the building and its foundations.
“They ran through the front post, then they ran over a bollard, and then they rammed the building,” she said.
“They weren’t very good drivers, I can tell you that, they hit more of the post than the window (where the ATM was affixed).”
The front door was poleaxed by the truck, making it impossible for it to be opened without seeing the entire front of the building collapse.
Damage to the fuse box also meant that the owners were forced to sit in the rubble and mess of their once lively store for the entire day following the incident, as they waited for an electrician to arrive and ensure the building was safe.
Despite facing up to half-a-year without opening its doors, the local business is still selling the necessities out of the town’s service station, which have graciously offered support.
“They are so helpful. They’ve let me put bread, eggs, milk, papers (inside) – all the essentials, just the bare essentials,” Ms Gailberger said.
“It’s 20 loaves of bread. It at least gives my baker something to do.”
While most of the bakery’s cakes, pastries and cremes can no longer be sold until the machines are back up and running properly, donuts are still available for purchase at the service station.
Ms Gailberger said the bakery was a hotspot for the small country town since they took over two years ago.
Families often stop in for the usual delights or fish and chips before returning later for ice creams and coffee.
She added that many locals have been deeply hurt by recent events, which has seen the butcher broken into multiple times, as well as the hardware store.
“Some of them are really angry – why are they picking on Yinnar?” she said.
“You hear ramraids and things like that in the city, but not in the country. I mean, I thought I was quite safe.
“Crime is ridiculous, they think they can get away with it.
“It’s not just that they think they can get away with it … (it’s) the unnecessary hardships that they cause to others that they don’t take into consideration.”
Ms Gailberger said that she had recently put staff onto salaries, creating additional strain for both her and her employees.
“I can’t do anything about it,” she lamented.
“I feel so sorry that I can’t help people now, I just feel that I can’t do anything for those people hanging out for what we offered (either) … I feel so sick in my stomach.”
Locals have offered their condolences, with many supporting in the foreground and background, including fellow bakery the Glen Bakehouse (Glengarry), rallying the community by raising money at the recent Glengarry Market.
Ms Gailberger felt grateful and uplifted by this, especially one particular sign from a local child, who said the company will someday rise again like their bread.
“The community have been so supportive, with some even creating a guys corner in the morning. They have been meeting there every morning since, and they walk their dogs. It’s so cute, and I love the community,” she said.
The investigation into the ATM ramraiding incidents remains ongoing, with further arrests to be expected, according to Victoria Police.
“These kinds of incidents have devasting impacts on small business owners who are just trying to make a living,” Detective Acting Senior Sergeant of the Eastern Region Crime Squad, Hannah Thompson said.
“Our work does not stop here, and we will continue investigating until every person involved is held to account.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at: www.crimestoppersvic.com.au
