Laurence Pope at the scene of the alleged burglary. Photo / Alex Burton
Laurence Pope at the scene of the alleged burglary. Photo / Alex Burton
A man is facing a slew of charges after an Auckland pilot launched his own investigation to track down an alleged thief.
On Sunday, the Herald reported the story of businessman and professional pilot Laurence Pope.
He managed to identify the man who allegedly snuck into his Viaduct apartment in the dead of night and stole a backpack containing treasured possessions on October 6.
Samuel John Colbourne, 31, appeared in the Auckland District Court today facing multiple charges of burglary and more than 20 charges of dishonestly using a bank card.
Police said he was arrested in the city the previous day.
Court documents said Colbourne is of no fixed abode and his occupation was listed as a kitchen hand.
Auckland District Court registry staff confirmed he did not seek name suppression and was remanded in custody ahead of his next appearance in the same court in November.
His alleged offending was not limited to Pope's apartment, court documents show.
He is also accused of breaking into a storage unit in Parnell in September and being unlawfully in a unit in Grey Lynn the day after the alleged Viaduct burglary.
Pope earlier told the Herald he was fast asleep when the alleged burglar entered his Viaduct apartment.
They allegedly left with a backpack - among its contents Pope's pilot licence, airport access cards, MacBook, two pairs of Prada sunglasses, Tesla car key and credit cards.
Laurence Pope created wanted posters from CCTV footage he obtained from a store in downtown Auckland visited by the man who burgled his apartment. Photo / Supplied
A $12,000 Rolex Daytona watch, carrying significant sentimental value, was also allegedly stolen.
It was not the first time Pope had been the victim of crime and he knows stolen property can be low on the list for Auckland's often overworked and under-resourced police.
So, Pope went about tracking down and contacting the man he believed was allegedly responsible on social media.
However, police have cautioned people against launching their own criminal investigations and warned any admissions of guilt they elicited via social media may not be admissible in court.
"Generally speaking, private inquiries made through social media platforms, may have the potential to compromise police investigations," a police spokesperson said.
"This could occur through disposal of evidence and interference with witnesses. Police advise victims to liaise with the officer assigned to their case before putting potential evidence into the public arena via social media.
"While we appreciate it can be frustrating for victims of a crime to wait for an investigation to conclude, Police strongly discourages people from taking matters into their own hands. This places them at greater risk of harm."
The spokeswoman said information about stolen property should be handed to police.
Pope passed his information to police and a few days later officers executed a search warrant at a storage locker.
The burglar also allegedly embarked on a spending spree across Auckland at locations ranging from a suburban Rebel Sport to a North Shore petrol station to local cabs, which led Pope to be able to track the person.
