The combination of these things meant that by the time of the armed robbery of the Armaguard coin crew at Broadway, employees in my depot were almost in a state of panic about having to perform the work, particularly the work needed to be performed without an escort. Members were approaching me left, right and centre for information about the attacks and what was being done to prevent them. The Armaguard robbery in Broadway was a shock to people at my yard because it was an attack on a coin crew. Coin crews are not considered to be that attractive to criminals. There was speculation in my yard, coming from Armaguard employee contacts, that the attackers had made a mistake and were in fact intending to target an ATM crew that normally service the site. That to me makes a lot more sense and is more consistent with the pattern of attacks that I have experienced. However, although there was speculation amongst employees to that effect, we did not know this for sure and so we couldn't help thinking that criminals were copying previous recent successful attacks on unescorted crews.
121 We accept that, by December 2003, there was in existence an industrial environment where the Cash-In-Transit industry was suffering a high and escalating incidence of armed robberies or attempted robberies on armed car crews. We also accept from the evidence that, within the industry, there was a growing perception that organised crime was showing serious and increasing interest in the work of the armoured car or Cash-In-Transit firms. Gun related robberies were on the increase. In the last four months of 2003, there were seven armed robberies against three armoured car companies (six of which occurred prior to 19 December 2003 and one which occurred a few days later). In addition, leaving aside a number of security incidents the character of which was debated between the parties (such as, whether a particular robbery was violent) there were at least three armed robberies against armoured car crews which were described by the companies as "attempted" armed robberies. Most of the robberies were committed at banks and ATMs serviced by the armoured car companies. There was also evidence of a number of suspicious incidents affecting both the armoured car companies directly or sub-contract staff involved in the maintenance of ATMs.
122 Mr Farahar, General Manager of Chubb, accepted that there was, in 2003, a wave of successful or attempted armed robberies against the armoured car industry in the Sydney area.
123 It was in this industrial climate that, on 17 December 2003, there was an armed attack on a Linfox Armaguard armoured car crew carrying coins at Broadway. Coin trucks had not been regarded in the industry as at risk before this robbery. The incident therefore raised the particular concerns of employees. The evidence as to the circumstances of this robbery was very detailed. The employees were performing a coin delivery but were also carrying a specific amount of other cash. Further, the crew did not follow the delivery route identified in the site risk assessment, although this appears to have been because the employees had never seen the assessment. It was missing from the relevant branch office. The particular armoured vehicle which was used for the delivery was indistinguishable from other armoured vehicles which carried cash (although we accept it is obvious when a crew leaves the vehicle if they are carrying only or predominantly coins, since coins are bulky and carried on a trolley).
124 There is a procedure used by all armoured car operatives as to information made available by them to their employees arising from any attack in the Cash-In-Transit Industry. The information comes to employees through a security "alert". The Linfox Armaguard security alert described the 17 December 2003 robbery as being on a crew from the Bankstown yard which had "just serviced a Changemaster machine", while the Chubb security alert described it as an armed robbery "which took place on a crew performing a coin service". The "alerts" of the respondents, when compared to the reaction of employees, understate the effect of this robbery. The effect on employees, we find, was profound.
125 Mr Craig Marvin, one of the co-delegates at the Chubb Smithfield Depot said as to the effect of this particular robbery at the workplace:
I recall that there was a far amount of discussion about this particular robbery because it was on a coin truck. I remember there was a sense of disbelief that a coin truck could have been hit. I remember some of the comments from the floor including one to this effect:
"Coin trucks, there the safest of safe jobs and now they are starting to get hit,"
and another
"What type of dick head is it that would hit a coin truck, there hitting anything. We've got to do something about all this.
126 Mr Dean Ponting, delegate at the Chubb Lane Cove Depot said, as earlier noted, of his workplace:
The combination of these things meant that by the time of the armed robbery of the Armaguard coin crew at Broadway, employees in my depot were almost in a state of panic about having to perform the work, particularly the work needed to be performed without an escort. Members were approaching me left, right and centre for information about the attacks and what was being done to prevent them. The Armaguard robbery in Broadway was a shock to people at my yard because it was an attack on a coin crew. Coin crews are not considered to be that attractive to criminals. There was speculation in my yard, coming from Armaguard employee contacts, that the attackers had made a mistake and were in fact intending to target an ATM crew that normally service the site. That to me makes a lot more sense and is more consistent with the pattern of attacks that I have experienced. However, although there was speculation amongst employees to that effect, we did not know this for sure and so we couldn't help thinking that criminals were copying previous recent successful attacks on unescorted crews.
127 Mr Michael Walliker, delegate at the Linfox Armaguard Newcastle Depot, said, as to the significance of this incident for his workplace:
The coin crew attack at Broadway Shopping Centre on 17 December shocked me immensely as coin crews were not normally targeted due to low cash amount offenders would gain from attack. Employees at that stage were sick of the inaction of the company and wanted something done about it.