More than $215,000 in outstanding parking and other traffic fines were collected in a two-day Sheriff’s blitz at Werribee and Hoppers Crossing last week.
Officers from the North-West Metropolitan region called in outstanding debts, identifying 36 people named in 679 outstanding warrants via automatic number-plate recognition technology.
Payment was received from 31 people on the day, finalising 231 of the warrants and amounting to almost $80,000.
Wheels were clamped on 30 vehicles, their drivers required to arrange payment on the spot to have the clamps removed.
The licences or vehicle registrations of five drivers were put on the line until payment for a collective 26 warrants was made – the motorists were given seven days.
Victoria’s Sheriff Brendan Facey said similar operations ran every day around the state in a bid to stamp out fine evasion.
He said outstanding fines could easily “spiral out of control”.
“While the majority of people do the right thing, unfortunately there is always a small number who choose to flout the law,” he said.
“This is a reminder that the Sheriff’s office is working around the clock to recover money owed.”
He urged anybody with outstanding fines to visit fines.vic.gov.au, and pay up.
