PERTH Hills election signs are being reported missing or found dumped in piles as the election date draws nearer, with some campaign workers resorting to air tag tracking.

A Liberal campaign assistant said air tags had to be used to track the location of signs.

“While I realise that electoral signs are not very popular amongst the general public it is and has been a promotion method used by all parties over many decades,” they said.

“This election the theft and destruction of signs has become an epidemic.”

A WA Police spokesperson said that the thefts are a crime and that if damage is caused to public property the offender may be charged with criminal damage or destruction of property.

“WA Police are continuing with investigations in relation to reports of signage thefts in the Swan and Perth Hills areas,” they said.

The spokesperson did not provide a number of election material thefts for the area compared to previous years when asked, explaining the offence of ‘stealing’ was added to incident reports in each instance and did not identify the specific item stolen unless it was reviewed in the full report.

“Police continue to encourage victims of theft to report matters to 131 444, and anyone with information or CCTV regarding the identity of persons or vehicles involved in the theft of signage to report to Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online,” they said.