All bar one of the five mailboxes located on the Kamilaroi Highway a few kilometres out of town were either ripped from their foundations or bent sideways in two separate attacks on the weekend.

“It’s as though no one has any respect for anything any more,” Mr Wicks said.

It appears the culprits attached a chain to Mr Wicks’ hand-made letterbox which had stood in the same spot for the last 25 years, and used a vehicle to haul it and 200kg of concrete footing, from the ground.

“It was there 8pm on Friday and gone on Saturday morning,” he said.

“We found a few broken chain links near the skid marks where they’ve pulled it out.”

Mr Wicks traced the concrete skid marks to the neighbouring BalleyRagen Bridge where the offenders dumped the letterbox into the Namoi River.

Submerged just below the water’s surface are several other residents’ mailboxes.

Mr Wicks’ had a distinctive horse at the top which he crafted himself more than two decades ago.

“It’s worth about $1500,” he said.

Not finished there, the vandals returned overnight on Sunday or early Monday morning and wrecked four other mailboxes including Mr Hill’s.

All incidents have been reported to police but Mr Wicks hopes someone may have seen suspicious activity at the letterboxes, near the Bluevale Road turn-off, during the weekend.

He is offering a $500 reward for information leading to a conviction of  the guilty persons.

“To do this is just senseless vandalism,” he said.

The latest spate of vandalism comes barely a week after police made arrests in relation to malicious damage at the Talibah Street playing fields and at the Main Street Car Wash where a brick was thrown at the glass door of a vending machine.

Those with information about reported vandalism are urged to contact Gunnedah police on 6742 9099.