Fuel theft is on the rise in Australia as motorists reach breaking point over the spiralling costs at the bowser.
Incidents of theft have been reported on the streets of regional Victoria and in Queensland, including brazen thieves who siphoned fuel from trucks as drivers slept at rest stops.
The cost of unleaded petrol has now nudged $3 per litre, crippling motorists and businesses, as the global oil crisis triggered by the war in the Middle East shows no sign of easing.
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Victoria Police are investigating afters several streets in Kyneton, in central Victoria, were targeted by fuel thieves yesterday and on Friday.
It is believed unknown offenders tampered with fuel cap covers of cars parked along Wedge and Powlett streets between 5pm on Friday and 8am yesterday, police said.
An investigation into the incidents is now under way.
Meanwhile, truck drivers in rural Queensland have been urged to lock their fuel tanks after drivers reported having fuel stolen overnight as they slept.
"With the rising cost of fuel across Australia, unfortunately we all know what tends to follow… opportunistic theft," a spokesperson for Ambrose Haulage Pty Ltd said on Facebook
"One of our drivers had a very close call overnight at Moonie with someone attempting to access the truck.
"Please keep an extra eye out when you're parked up especially overnight."
The surging price of fuel and regional shortage has prompted calls for stricter fuel rationing across the country.
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One Nation's Barnaby Joyce said now was the time to ramp up conservation efforts as our existing stock is depleted.
"We should be going towards rationing," Joyce said.
"The problem is taking its second iteration, because you've got to remember, the oil we were using at the start of the crisis had already been extracted from the Middle East.
"So we weren't having to contend with the closure of the Strait of Hormoz. It's actually going to become more difficult."
Current petrol supplies are expected to run dry at the end of April.
The International Energy Agency has urged Australians to work form home or catch public transport to preserve fuel.
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