[March 13, 1926 – Auckland Star] There is an epidemic of petty thieving in the Mt. Albert district just at present.
On Thursday evening, the Mt. Albert Borough Council offices were broken into. Entrance was gained, it is said, through a window at the back of the offices. The place was ransacked, but the perpetrators were rewarded with a find of only 4/.
While the occupants slept upstairs thieves broke into a house at the corner of Edendale and St. Luke’s Roads last evening. It was an audacious piece of work for the culprits helped themselves to eatables and sat down to supper at the dining-table. Then they toured the downstair part of the house and ransacked every room. About one pound in money and a silver watch was all that could be found.
It is believed that the same person or persons are responsible for both thefts.
RAILWAY STATIONS ENTERED
[May 9, 1913 – Auckland Star] The railway stations at Avondale and Mt. Albert were broken into by thieves at an early hour this morning. At the Avondale station an unsuccessful attempt was made to open the safe, and three doors in the booking office were broken open, while at Mt, Albert, where there is no safe, the sum of 10/ was extracted from a drawer.
The burglaries must have been committed between 1 am (when the officials of both stations go off duty), and 6.30 am, when the station attendants resume work. The indications are that the cracksman was either very young or quite inexperienced, as the attempt to open the safe at Avondale station was a very clumsy one, and the intruder left marks of his presence on the newly-painted walls. Entrance was gained through the window, which had been forced open by means of a jemmy or some similar instrument, which was also used in the attempt to open the safe and to break open the drawers. It is probable that the first burglary was at Mt Albert where a box containing electric batteries had been forced open, giving the intruder sufficient experience to know that the batteries at Avondale station did not offer spoil.
The police are investigating the matter but so far no one has been arrested.
SAFE DYNAMITED.
[June 11, 1928 – Auckland Star] Burglars paid a visit last night to the premises of Mr. Peter Floyd, grocer, near the tram terminus at Mount Albert. The door was forced open with a jemmy, and the safe was blown with gelignite, but there was nothing of negotiable value inside, and the thieves came away empty handed. A visit, apparently by the same thieves, was paid to Messrs Hellaby’s butcher shop at the corner of New North and Mount Albert Roads, but evidently they were scared away before they succeeded in getting inside the premises. An attempt was also made to enter the Mount Albert railway station between 10 o’clock last night and 4 o’clock this morning. One of the station windows was broken with a stone, but when the intruder endeavoured to raise it he found the sash was held by a nail. On examination this morning it was found that nothing was missing.