As an avid fisherman and a history buff living on a block of land on Tasmania’s pristine east coast, Grant Whelan enjoyed a peaceful life.
“Dad is like a salt-of-the-earth Tasmanian,” Chantel Yates, Mr Whelan’s daughter, said.
“He just wants to be on the land and looking after his cows and driving around his farm.”
Grant Whelan lives on a rural property on Tasmania’a east coast. (Supplied: Chantel Yates)
That peaceful life was shattered in the early hours of Saturday morning.
Police said two masked men broke into Mr Whelan’s home at Coles Bay, bound his hands and feet together with cable ties, assaulted him, and demanded access to his gun safe.
They allegedly fled with nine of his guns, some cash, and his ute, which was later found submerged in the nearby Aspley River.
Before leaving his property, police said the alleged offenders dragged the 76-year-old outside and set his house on fire.
Firefighters at the scene after the fire, which destroyed Grant Whelan’s home. (Supplied: Tasmania Police)
“There’s nothing, he’s lost everything,”
Ms Yates said.
“It was one of the things I noticed [on Saturday] is he just kept remembering things throughout the day that aren’t there anymore.”
She said that one of the things Mr Whelan realised he may have lost, was the bravery medal he was awarded in 1995, for saving the life of a fisherman on Tasmania’s west coast.
“Dad was a professional cray fisherman and he fished regularly on the west coast of Tasmania, which, as we Tasmanians know, is some of the roughest seas in the world,” Ms Yates said.
Grant Whelan was taken to Royal Hobart Hospital after the assault. (Supplied)
She said he spotted a nearby boat go down.
“There was a decision they had to make about whether to put their own lives at risk in order to save that life. And dad made the call and did it.”
‘Tasmanians really come together around events like this’
Ms Yates said her dad is very active in the local community and is a part of local shooting clubs.
“If there’s a silver lining, it’s definitely community, and I just feel so grateful to be Tasmanian,” she said.
“I think Tasmanians just really come together around events like this.”
The community is rallying to support Grant Whelan after his ordeal. (Supplied)
Police are still looking for the two offenders.
“It’s not OK for people to not feel safe in their homes,” Ms Yates said.
“If you know anything, just have a think about what that might be like for you, if it was your dad.
“We just can’t put up with that kind of behaviour … so please come forward if you know anything, please,” she said.
The offenders stole Grant Whelan’s ute, which was later found dumped in a river. (Supplied)
Mr Whelan has been recovering in the Royal Hobart Hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.
“We’re just trying to focus on Dad and looking after him and making sure he gets the support that he needs in order to move forward now,” Ms Yates said.
Police are also asking to speak to anyone who saw a Blue Mazda 6 sedan at the Triabunna Roadhouse on Saturday morning, and was subsequently found burnt out in bushland near Wilderness Way, Travellers Rest in the state’s north.
