An Australian cabinetmaker has shocked people after revealing his unbelievable act after falling victim to a robbery.
Jeff Usher took to social media earlier this week to share that his business had been broken into by two teenagers.
Instead of calling the police however, the kind-hearted Katherine local decided to reach out to the two young men with a very generous offer, the NT News reported.
“This young fella and at least one other mate visited our shed on Friday night at 11 to 11.30,” he wrote on Facebook.
“Only issue I have is we weren’t open at that time of night and it’s not cool to use a jimmy bar on our doors.
“Anyhow Katherine being a small community and Custom Cabinets being a long time supported of our youth, we would love to get in contact with this young fella and offer him a better way of getting by.
“It’s likely he’s too young to start an apprenticeship but surely we could work out a training agreement with the hope of long term employment and breaking the mold of possible future incarceration.
“We would be happy to start a conversation with this young lad and his school about his future, as currently I think it’s a bit bleak.
“Feel free to share this as this is a genuine offer, we haven’t gone to the police as they are busy enough and so are we.
“If you happen to see this how about you change your future with our help.”
The olive branch offered to the teenager has warmed hearts online, with people from around Australia applauding his actions.
Mr Usher told the NT News he thought the current approach to juvenile crime was not delivering results and he would welcome the young man onto his small team of two apprentices, four workers and an office manager.
“I’m not trying to save the world, I just reckon some of these kids need to be built up, not a kicking,” he said.
“The crime impacted our business a bit but I don’t think that behaviour’s going to go anywhere.
“He’ll end up in jail, crime’s a slippery slope and a hard habit to break I think.
“The community here is amazing. A lot of people like myself want to help because being angry and upset is a wasted emotion.”
Many towns in the Northern Territory have been struggling with an explosion in crime.
Back in April, more than 800 Katherine residents signed a petition calling for a curfew on young children in order to tackle the town’s crime crisis.
Local MLA Jo Hersey tabled the petition in parliament, calling on the government to “restore some measure of law and order”.
“Territorians are saying ‘enough is enough’ not just in Alice Springs and Darwin but in Katherine as well,” Mrs Hersey said.
“Katherine locals are passionate about their town and it breaks their heart to see such disregard for the law from criminals.”
Crime rates jumped significantly in Katherine last year.
In the year to January, property offences were up over 80 per cent on the average across the decade prior.
Offenses against the person, including murders, assaults and robbery, were up 57 percent over the same period.
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