They say a man’s home is his castle, but with 24 security cameras, 18 searchlights and two reinforced steel gates, this house in Hurstville, Sydney, is more like a fortress.
The otherwise unremarkable single-storey red-brick home on a quiet suburban street has locals and passers-by alike scratching their heads, wondering why anyone would need so much security.
Alex and Julie Saikaly bought the 770-square-metre property on Australia Street more than 30 years ago, and their reason for the over-the-top security is nothing sinister.
‘People in this neighbourhood are thieves so we don’t trust them,’ Ms Saikaly told Daily Mail.
‘This is our home and we don’t want to move, so we spent a lot of money on cameras.’
At a cost of about $60,000, the whole setup is more than a third of the $160,000 the couple paid for their house in 1991 and took more than a month to install.
The cameras cover every possible angle and can even see into the driveway next door.
In addition to the cameras, lights and steel gates, there are electric roller shutters on the garage and windows, as well as bars on the doors, ensuring no one has any chance of making it inside.
This house in Hurstville, Sydney, might be the most protected suburban home in Australia
Alex and Julie Saikaly say they bought the $60,000 worth of security because they don’t trust the people in their neighbourhood who they think are thieves
It has 24 security cameras, 18 search lights and two reinforced steel gates
The cameras cover every possible angle and can even see next door’s driveway
Even the couple’s two trailers parked on the street outside are fully locked down, chained together and secured with two heavy steel chains each, bolted into thick rings somehow embedded in the concrete gutter.
Sydney Security Specialist managing director Michael Brilley said 24 security cameras for a single-storey home was ‘probably overkill’.
‘You just need to cover all of the external perimeter so you’ve got enough coverage that every door and window is covered,’ he told the Daily Telegraph.
The house has also attracted the attention of Fred Nagi, a former member of the notorious Brothers for Life gang who now shares videos on social media.
The property was visited by Nagi, with footage of the encounter later going viral online.
‘Man, I had to pull up to this house,’ Nagi says in the viral clip.
‘It’s got like 40-something cameras. I’m going to knock on the door. I want to know what’s going on.’
Mr Saikaly then answered the door and agreed to appear on camera.
More of the cameras not on the front corner of the house which has at least 10 by itself
Multiple cameras and search lights have ever inch of the property covered
The otherwise-unremarkable single-storey redbrick on a quiet suburban street has locals and passers-by alike scratching their heads wondering why anyone would need so much security
Even their two trailers parked on the street outside are fulled locked down and are chained together
The cameras monitor everything on the home and inside the property
The house has also attracted the attention of Fred Nagi, a former member of the notorious Brothers for Life gang, who now shares videos on social media.
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How much security is too much when you’re trying to feel safe in your own neighbourhood?
‘Hi, how are you?’ Nagi said.
‘I’m just from social media, my name’s Freddy. I just wanted to know … I always drive past here and you’ve got so many cameras. Can I ask why you’ve got so many cameras or is that too personal?’
Mr Saikaly replies, ‘To be safe, and protection.’
‘So the cameras are just for protection?’ Nagi said.
‘All around, 360 degrees,’ the homeowner confirms.
‘So you’re always watching the screen inside?’ Nagi asked.
‘No, no, recording, 24 hours recording,’ Mr Saikaly said.
Nagi was then invited inside to check out the home’s monitoring setup.
‘We’re in this room here, man it’s like Fort Knox,’ Nagi said. ‘It’s all getting recorded.’
