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A Bay of Plenty jeweller whose two stores have been targeted by thieves nine times in two-and-a-half years says he and his wife are “just shells” now, as their life’s work goes “down the gurgler”.
He says they have received “very little” reparation through the justice system.
href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/rotorua/">Rotorua Jewellers was targeted in a ram raid early this morning, which “shell-shocked” co-owner Rod Pearce watched happen on his security camera.
“I watched people run around in my shop at bloody 4.30 in the morning,” he said.
He said a fog cannon, protective film on the front glass, and a roller grill were installed at the beginning of 2023, after receiving funding through the Government’s Small Retailer Crime Prevention Fund.
Pearce said the roller grill “was destroyed when the car drove through it”. The protective film “worked” as the glass did not break and fall out and “the smoke cannon did its job”.
“They slowed it down fractionally. The smoke cannon - it confused them.”
The damage would have been “a lot worse” without those measures, he said.
Pearce said it was the ninth break-in in two-and-a-half years between their two stores, which was “horrific”.
Rod and Jannine Pearce pictured in 2023. Photo / Andrew Warner
He said he believed the police had caught “just about every single person” involved in the crimes.
“But,” he said, “the justice system is a joke. They just get out with no consequences, no reparation, nothing.”
Pearce said the front of the shop would probably cost about $40,000 to fix.
“I don’t care, frankly, if these young people spend the rest of their lives paying the reparation to repair … not only for us as a business but for the building owners as well.
“It all costs money – a dollar’s a dollar. They need to earn, they need to know what a dollar costs and how hard it is to earn and how hard it is to pay back.
A police spokesman said they were notified of a ram raid at a commercial premises in Tutanekai St about 4.30am.
“A group is understood to have used a vehicle to gain entry and left the scene in the vehicle prior to police arriving.
“A scene examination will be conducted at the property and inquiries are ongoing to identify and locate those involved, as well as the vehicle involved,” he said.
Megan Wilson is a health and general news reporter for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post. She has been a journalist since 2021.
