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Monday, Mar 10, 2014
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THE INDEPENDENT VOICE OF MID CANTERBURY
Violated by brazen thieves BY MICHELLE NELSON MICHELLE.N@THEGUARDIAN.CO.NZ
Raewyn Davis examines her car, which police fingerprinted after it became a crime scene. PHOTO TETSURO MITOMO 090314-TM-170
A Netherby family feels “violated” by the brazen thieves who entered their house and made off with a vehicle and items from the freezer – while they were home! Raewyn Davis, her three children and her mother were asleep when the offending occurred shortly after 3am on Saturday morning. But her partner Lucas Edwards, who is a nightshift worker, was still awake watching television in the lounge. Lights were on in several rooms at the time. The offenders took two sets of car keys from a shelf in the kitchen, and then pushed the family’s black Mitsubishi wagon down the drive. Mr Edwards was alerted when he heard the rearview mirrors scraping along the corrugated iron fence. As he ran outside they drove off at speed. After calling the police Ms Davis was quick to report the theft on Facebook, and her message was reposted hundreds of times within a matter of hours. Later on Saturday family friends Kera and Benn Mackenzie called to offer assistance, as the keys for both the family’s cars had been stolen. The Mackenzies then began
their own search and found the stolen vehicle not far away in Albert Street, with the keys still in the ignition. However, as quarter of a tank off fuel was gone, Ms Davis said it must have been driven some distance before it was abandoned. It had sustained some damage, but was still drivable. With the keys still missing for the couple’s other car they have removed a wheel, in case the thieves return. The thieves also took meat from the freezer, but abandoned it outside. “I’m really grateful to everyone who reposted the message and to Kera and Benn for finding the car, but I feel really violated that someone was inside the house while my kids were asleep,” Ms Davis said. The door through which the intruders entered was unlocked to allow Ms Davis’ mother and eldest daughter access to the house from the sleepout they share just a metre or so away from the house. “I’m keeping that door locked from now on, I’m not taking any more chances like that,” she said. Over the weekend Ms Davis has heard of a number of people who have had food taken from freezers.
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