CFA volunteer Mark Cartledge said he was “disgusted” on Friday after visiting separate shops in Ballarat to swap the full cans with empty ones, only to discover that three tins were missing.

“It does not matter if they contained $5 or hundreds of dollars, every little bit counts,” he said.

“For somebody to stoop so low is absolutely disgusting. 

“They are virtually stealing from children and among the sickest, most vulnerable children you could take from.” 

Mr Cartledge said he did not want the stores identified amid fear they would become a target for future attacks.

However, he said the store owners were distressed by the theft and had contacted police.

All the tins were cut from the chains securing them to the benchtops on which they were displayed. 

Fellow CFA volunteer Tracey Cameron said what was most disturbing about the thefts was that it was not the first time.

“At least once every couple of months in the past year we have seen this type of incident and it does not seem to matter if the tins are chained or not, people will simply cut them off,” Ms Cameron said.

“It is unbelievable that people could actually contemplate taking from such a worthy cause.”

She said it was difficult to determine how much money was contained in the tins as they were regularly emptied by volunteers in an effort to stop such thefts. 

“The volunteers go around and collect them a couple of times a year,” she said.

“Unfortunately, sometimes we go around and they are not there because somebody has taken them.”

Anyone with information on the missing fundraising tins is urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

melissa.cunningham@fairfaxmedia.com.au