A prominent Whangārei jewellery store was one of three businesses targeted by thieves overnight.

It only took a minute for the offenders to force their way through the front door of Steve Haywood Master Jeweller in the Town Basin, smash four glass cabinets, and make off with an undisclosed amount of jewellery.

The 12.30am Sunday heist was followed around five hours later by two attempted break-ins at Z Kamo Service Station on Kamo Rd and Super Liquor on Port Rd.

A police spokesperson said the offenders failed to gain entry into the stores and enquiries were ongoing to determine whether the three incidents were linked.

Steve Haywood said the thieves who targeted his jewellery store had taken “whatever they could find”.

But he didn’t want to share specific details about the burglary so as not to compromise the police investigation.

The burglary had broken a “pretty fortunate” 15-year spell for the Town Basin business but it was a sign of the times as Haywood felt crime had worsened and jewellers were specifically being targeted nationwide.

Police data showed the number of incidents of unlawful entry, burglaries and break-ins in Whangārei jumped from 459, between January and June 2021, to 504 for the same time period this year.

“We have to think about why people are that desperate they are choosing crime to try and make money,” Haywood said.

The number of car thefts and related offences in the Whangārei district has also risen from 472 from January to June last year, to 559 this year.

Amitesh Chandra’s Whau Valley home was burgled just a few weeks after his sister, who also lives in the house, had her car stolen.

However, the vehicle was stolen from her work, and there appeared to be no connection to the burglary.

The burglars took mainly cash and gold jewellery, Chandra said, but also broke items including a television and left the house a mess.

“They went through all the rooms, through all the cupboards. They just took whatever they wanted.”

He believed the thieves had been watching the house for some time, as people had previously knocked on the door and asked for people they had never heard of.

Although a youth had been arrested for stealing his sister’s car, Chandra said he thought they would probably get a slap on the wrist.

“I believe the parents should be punished for that if they can’t control their kids,” he said.

Kensington resident Yvette Stevens said her home had been broken into twice this year, and a bottle was thrown at her house shortly after the first break-in in February.

The second break-in was during the school holidays last month.

“We got home and our front door had been smashed in and we’d been broken into again,” Stevens said.

She said they were pretty sure they were being targeted by someone known to them but was told by police this could not be proven.

Stevens said it would be unusual for a bottle to be thrown randomly at their house, as there was not even a footpath on their side of the street where people would walk past.

The police advised them to put in CCTV cameras after the second break-in, she added.

Police said there were a number of things people could do to avoid being robbed, including locking doors and windows, keeping valuables out of sight and installing sensor lights and alarm systems.

Putting up signs saying you have CCTV, an alarm or a dog could also help, as well as making it look as though someone is at home, police said.

Leaving shoes by the door and dishes on the bench could help with this, clearing the mailbox and cleaning up around the property.

Police advise people who have been burgled to leave things as they are until officers arrive.

Anyone with information about Sunday night’s break-in in Whangārei can contact the police on 105 or anonymously through Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.