Paul Hogan is trapped in a living nightmare as his neighbourhood in Los Angeles suffers a wave of crime and homelessness.
The Crocodile Dundee legend, 81, lives in the once-elite beachside suburb of Venice, where a vast increase in homelessness has seen hundreds of tents line the beach’s famous boardwalk and a sharp increase in crime.
As a result of the terrifying situation, Paul is reportedly holing up inside his $4.5million mansion with his rockstar son Chance, 23, eagerly waiting for the day he can finally return home to Australia.
‘Hell on earth’: Paul Hogan, 81, is trapped in a living nightmare as his neighbourhood Venice, Los Angeles suffers a wave of crime and homelessness
‘Where Paul lives in hell on earth,’ Paul’s neighbour Tyler Proctor, a local politician, told Woman’s Day magazine this week.
‘His house is like a fortress and it needs to be. I can see why [he] wants to move out,’ Proctor added.
Paul moved to the United States permanently in 2005, after growing up in Granville in Sydney’s western suburbs.
Crisis: Venice has seen a vast increase in crime and homelessness, with hundreds of tents now lining the beach’s famous boardwalk (pictured)
However, the comedian revealed last year that he was itching to leave the US as soon as the coronavirus pandemic was over.
‘I can’t wait for this stupid disease to go away so I can get out,’ Paul revealed in the News Corp Australia podcast Evenin’ Viewers With Paul Hogan.
‘I’m like a kangaroo in a Russian zoo — I don’t belong here.’
‘His house is like a fortress and it needs to be’: As a result of the terrifying situation, Paul is reportedly holing up inside his $4.5million mansion with his rockstar son Chance, 23, (left) eagerly waiting for the day he can finally return home to Australia
Despite yearning to come back to Australia, Paul said he would remain living in Venice to be a part of his son Chance’s life.
Paul shares Chance with fellow Crocodile Dundee co-star Linda Kozlowski, who he married in 1991 before amicably divorcing in 2014.
‘I’m here out of paternal duty because my kid is an American,’ he said.
‘I can’t wait for this stupid disease to go away so I can get out’: The comedian revealed last year that he was itching to leave the US as soon as the coronavirus pandemic was over
‘My kid is a ‘Yaussie’, a yank Aussie, he went to school here, his friends are here, his band is here.
Paul added that if Chance wanted to move with him to Australia, Paul would be ‘out of here in a flash.’
It comes as residents of Venice say soaring crime rates and the exploding homeless population have made life in the elite beachside community unbearable.
‘I’m here out of paternal duty’: Despite yearning to come back to Australia, Paul said he would remain living in Venice to be a part of his son Chance’s life
Business owners say they are being forced to close their doors and longterm residents are afraid to leave their homes after dark after being subjected to violent attacks and intimidation.
The world-famous beach community, 16 miles from downtown Los Angeles, has traditionally been a major tourism drawcard for the Californian city.
However, now the palm trees and promenade are blighted by hundreds of tents.
Terrifying situation: It comes as residents of Venice say soaring crime rates and the exploding homeless population have made life in the elite beachside community unbearable
According to figures from the Los Angeles Police Department provided to the Venice Neighbourhood Council, the violent robberies in the neighbourhood are up 177% from last year.
The same period has also seen a 162% increase in cases of assault with a deadly weapon involving a homeless person.
Meanwhile, hundreds of residents have put their signatures to a letter pleading for help from city and county officials.
‘Venice’s world famous beach and boardwalk are crippled,’ it says.
‘Local children are refusing to come to the beach because they’re frightened by what they’ve witnessed. Seniors who live on or near the boardwalk are terrified of walking in their own neighbourhoods.’
Tent city: The world-famous beach community, 16 miles from downtown Los Angeles, has traditionally been a major tourism drawcard for the Californian city. However, now the palm trees and promenade are blighted by hundreds of tents