Battling family floored by theft
CALLOUS crooks have stolen quadbikes put up for sale by a cash-strapped Mossman family with a gravely ill toddler.
Thieves using bolt-cutters cut through a security gate and lock at Mossman Secondhand to steal two four-wheelers worth about $2500 on Saturday night.
The bikes, part of a set of three, belonged to the Molloy family, whose 21-month-old daughter Domeaka must undergo gruelling surgery in Brisbane next month to mend holes in her heart.
Yesterday, through tears, Mrs Molloy told The Cairns Post: "It's heart breaking. It was our last nest egg. We're shattered."
The theft came after financial struggles that have left mum Trisha, dad Anthony, and big sisters Taleah, 5, and Amaya, 13, crammed into a borrowed one-bedroom apartment as they care for the sick toddler.
Hopes of moving to a bigger home hung on the bike sale, they said.
"Every time we turn round and think we're getting ahead, we seem to get knocked back a peg," Mrs Molloy said.
Mr Molloy said that without cash from the quadbikes the family would continue to do it tough.
"We can't work for the time we're away," he said.
"You've got no income and the extra expense of being away."
But it is not the lost money that weighs heaviest on Mrs Molloy’s mind.
"There is a chance she (Domeaka) might not make it," she said." I don't want to have to say goodbye."
A distressed Ivan Diack, from Mossman Secondhand, appealed to the thieves to return the bikes.
"You know where you got them from," he said."Bring them back."
"It's a little girl and her family.
"It's really bad for them. They're distraught. They're depending on the money."
Anyone with information can phone Crime Stoppers 1800 333 000.
Share this article
Shattered: Trisha and Anthony Molloy with daughters Domeaka and Taleah yesterday.
Boy, 6, left stranded
THE parents of a six-year-old boy forced to walk more than 3km home through the back streets of Cairns have slammed the daycare centre that did not pick him up. more
Hunt on for first home
BABINDA, Gordonvale and White Rock are the best places to look for a house if you are on budget and looking for growth, a property report says. more
Fishing for a lifeline
FISHERS fear they may be forced to close as spiralling fuel prices chew up already meagre profits. more
Cane fire stops traffic
A CANE field fire caused stopped traffic on the Bruce Highway yesterday for two hours. more





