Television personality Patti Newton has had a boot-load of Christmas presents bought for her children and grandchildren stolen from her car.
Newton said she was unnerved to discover that her car, full of gifts for her family, had been robbed last Thursday.
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Patti Newton's Christmas presents stolen
Thieves went through the car of iconic entertainer Patti Newton, taking all her Christmas presents stored in the boot.
"I got to the car and thought, 'jeez, my car is a big messy,"' she said on 3AW. "It was a very big shock."
Newton, wife of TV personality Bert Newton, had completed her shopping and had wrapped all her gifts and separated them into bags in her boot. Clothes she bought for Bert for Christmas were among the stolen gifts, she said.
"I didn't know whether to jump up and down and scream or cry or get angry, so I did all," she said.
"It's just the violation that's someone's been in your car and ... touched all of your things."
Newton was the victim of a bag snatch at the Chadstone shopping centre on May 16, 2008, where a considerable quantity of cash and jewellery was stolen.
Meanwhile, police are warning shoppers to hide Christmas gifts stored in cars, saying they expect a spike in thefts again this year.
Assistant Commissioner Tess Walsh said by taking a few easy measures, a lot of pain and annoyance could be averted this Christmas.
"While there is no good time to be a victim of theft, the holiday period is a particularly painful one," she said.
Last December, more than 13,000 incidents of thefts occurred, which equates to more than $25 million worth of property – cash, appliances, jewellery, equipment and food.
"Thieves will literally steal presents off the back seats of cars and from underneath Christmas trees," Assistant Commissioner Walsh said.
"We're also seeing the theft of personal items while people are out and about."
She said mobile phones, wallets and handbags were easy targets in crowds if left unattended or if their owner was distracted.
"We want to encourage the community to do all they can to make sure they're making it as hard as possible for these crooks so they don't ruin their Christmas," she said.