Police are appealing for public assistance to identify two men following a series of thefts and attempted thefts from supermarkets in Sydney's south west at the weekend.
Between 7pm and 8.30pm last Sunday (22 March 2020), two men attended supermarkets in Granville, Auburn, Bass Hill and Lidcombe, and accessed restricted storage areas.
The pair appeared to be targeting toilet paper and stole multiple packs from the Granville and Auburn stores, however, left empty handed from the stores in Bass Hill and Lidcombe.
It was also reported that one of the men threatened an employee with a knife at the Auburn store.
Officers from Wetherill Park Region Enforcement Squad (RES) have commenced an investigation and are now appealing to the community for information.
As part of their appeal, officers have released an image of two men who they believe may be able to assist with inquiries.
The first man is depicted as being of Mediterranean/Middle Eastern appearance, about 185-190cm tall, aged in his 30s, with a solid build. He has tattoos on his arms and was wearing a grey collared shirt with long blue track pants.
The second man is described as being 175-180cm tall with a slim build, aged between 30-35, and at the time was wearing black 'adidas' pants and a camouflaged hooded jumper.
Minister for Police and Emergency Services, David Elliott, urged anyone with information to come forward and report to police.
"I support any measures taken by police to protect our communities from this sort of disgraceful criminal activity, " he said.
"The people of NSW will not tolerate criminal behaviour at any time let alone during this crisis.
"People need to grow up and look out for our most vulnerable."
Investigators are also appealing for anyone who may have been in the areas around the time of the thefts and noticed suspicious activity to come forward.
Anyone with information that may assist investigators is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au. Information is treated in strict confidence.
