Police are hoping to reunite a Melbourne great-grandmother with her mobility scooter after callous thieves stole it from her retirement village earlier this month.
June Whitney woke up on October 9 to find her $2500 mobility scooter had been stolen from her retirement village along the Burwood Highway in Wantirna South.
The 85-year-old stopped driving two-and-a half years ago after suffering a brain aneurysm and mainly used the mobility scooter to collect her groceries from the shops across the road.
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Now she she can’t even do that because the distance is too far for her to walk and too short for taxis to accept the fare.
“It’s absolutely disgusting,” Whitney said.
“I didn’t cry. I just stood there with my mouth open … [I] got really upset and angry. really angry.”
Victoria Police senior constable Leanne Castle labelled the theft as “very callous”.
“People could be opportunistic in regards to taking this mobility scooter and on selling it, using it for parts,” Snr Const. Castle said.
Police have released images of the red Invacare Pegasus Metro mobility scooter which has an RACV sticker under the gears on the steering column and a black shopping bag on the back.
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The former registered nurse has a message for the heartless thieves who took the scooter.
“Don’t pick on the elderly. we’ve worked hard,” she said.
“If they’d come to me and said ‘listen, I fancy that scooter. I need the money. I’m really desperate’, I’d say, right, I’ll give it to you.”
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