On the night of Tuesday 7 January thieves broke into a rented Coomera home on the Gold Coast in Queensland and cleared out close to $50,000 worth of one-of-a-kind instruments and equipment, including vintage drum sets and a guitar signed by Johnny Cash.
The Gold Coast Bulletin reports the property was rented by Coomera man Fady Hanna who used it as a jam space for himself and his musician friends several times a week. Heartbreakingly they were preparing for their first real gig, which they’ve since had to cancel.
“It was devastating to walk through the door and see it all gone. It took years to build the collection – it had vintage, signed pieces which were irreplaceable,” Mr Hanna said. “I had all the items insured, but it is a challenging process as many do not have proof of purchase as they were bought from collectors, or online.”
There is a chance the stolen items could be recovered, said Mr Hanna, explaining that their distinct features will make it difficult for the thieves to re-sell the instruments undetected. “We know those instruments like the back of our hands, every scratch, dent or mark and we just want them back,” he said. He appealed to music store or pawn shop workers to keep their eyes peeled for vintage or signed instruments.
Police investigations are underway and anyone who comes across vintage instruments for sale or notices anything suspicious around the Foxwell Rd area in Coomera on Tuesday night should contact Policelink on 131 444.
UPDATE 1:12pm AEDT 10/01/14: Fady Hanna has contacted Music Feeds with a list of all the gear that was stolen, and the details make this story even more heart-breaking. Check out the list below and, once again, if you notice anything suspicious, contact the police.
Vintage Roland Juno 106 – Keyboard
Vintage Roland JX-3P – Keyboard
Moog Voyager – Keyboard
Yamaha Motif – Keyboard
Vintage black Fender Stratocaster
Japanese vintage sunburst bass guitar – no label
1970’s Yamaha PM 1000 mixing console
Yamaha 12 channel mixer
Yamaha 15” PA speaker x 2
Vintage Music Man tube amplifier
Roland SPD-S drum sample pad
Electro Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man delay pedal x 2
Ibanez Phasetone guitar pedal
Line 6 Verbzilla pedal
Hotcake overdrive pedal
MJM Brit Bender fuzz pedal
JHS Warbletron pedal
Line 6 DL4 delay pedal
Jekyll & Hyde overdrive pedal
Dunlop DC brick (power supply)
Boss DD5 delay pedal
Boss VE 20 vocal pedal
Yamaha Pacifica electric guitar
White vintage Fender Stratocaster (Johnny Cash signed pickguard)
Alesis drum machine
Sure beta 58 microphone
Vintage upright piano accordion
Ludwig drum hardware
Pearl hi hats
