Shocking footage of a brazen heist of a family-owned high-end jeweller shows masked hammer-wielding bandits smashing cabinets in the suburban shop.
Eight months on from the robbery of Ellerslie Jewellers and Engravers, owner John Rennell told the Herald one of his employees still needed counselling and medication to help his anxiety.
Previously published footage showed bystanders and neighbouring shopkeepers trying to stop the offenders from getting away, with one woman narrowly escaping being run over by the getaway car.
Two women chased the robbers across the road before being threatened with a hammer. New footage reveals the violent 47-second rampage from inside the shop.
Security videos from inside the store have been shared with the Herald after National Party leader Christopher Luxon spoke to media, from the small shop, about his party’s new law and order policies.
It shows four young men running into the shop armed with hammers, two donning hi-vis vests and another two carrying bags.
They immediately begin smashing glass cabinets and taking and shovelling jewellery into their bags.
One young man jumps on to the cabinet, bending down to pick up jewellery from beneath the smashed glass.
A different camera angle, pointing at the front door, shows one robber threatening bystanders outside as the others continue ransacking the shop.
The man, wearing sunglasses and a ski mask, lifts a hammer to his head as if ready to strike before going back inside and taking two display trays of jewellery.
After about 30 seconds, the man leads the getaway - running towards and threatening to hit a bystander at the door.
As the robbers leave, two smash more cabinets and fumble what other loot they can into their bags.
Employees then come out from the back of the shop, one clasping her hands at her mouth in disbelief as she quickly inspects the damage. Glass shards and empty jewellery displays are strewn across the floor.
Another employee then embraces her with a hug, speaking on the phone as they both keep their eye on the door.
The owner, Rennell, said he believed criminals would stop such brazen crimes if the justice system “hardened up on people”.
He said his daughter, who was working at the time of the heist, had remained stoic but the incident had been traumatising.
He said he was “on a crusade” to help National and Act form a government by sharing details of his plight.
Luxon said, “when you go through the story with [Rennell], let alone the trauma, hurt and loss with [him and his wife], it is profound.
“We have a 33 per cent increase in violent crime, and New Zealanders are telling us they’re sick of this,” Luxon said.
“We’re going to have serious consequences for serious offenders, and we’re going to have tougher sentencing,” he said.
It follows Luxon’s unveiling of new policies at National’s annual conference in Wellington over the weekend: to restrict how much judges can discount sentencing, and increase offenders’ access to rehabilitation.
Speaking to media today, Luxon said he believed judges “do the best they can under the confines of what Parliament sets for them.
“We’re going to put a cap on how much they can discount sentences: up to 40 per cent. We don’t want to see cases like we’ve seen where they have been 85 per cent discounts, for example.
“Judges will always have discretion on individual cases, but the public need to know there is a fair sentence for the right crime,” Luxon said.
The party’s justice spokesperson Paul Goldsmith said the status quo wasn’t taking the needs of victims into account.
National’s police spokesperson Mark Mitchell went further, saying some victims felt their voice wasn’t being heard.
Rennell said he believed National’s tough-on-crime approach would reduce crime.
“[Luxon] is committed. I believe what he’s saying. David Seymour is the same.
“I’m all for getting people back on course through programmes like restorative justice, but they have to face consequences,” Rennell said.
He understood the offenders involved in the heist in November were aged between 14 and 19.
He claimed the heist was sophisticated, saying he understood a 35-year-old woman - “their mother” - was waiting near the Ellerslie Racecourse as a getaway driver.
“All up, the damage was about a million dollars,” Rennell said.
Rennell told Luxon the police and his insurance company has been “fantastic” but said the main problem was the trauma.
He said a security grate over the door was now kept shut permanently, only opened to allow customers in one at a time.
Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.