One reporter even wondered if her lawnmower, stolen from her shed weeks ago, would be among the collection.
Burglary "wins" are easily among the most satisfying crime stories to write, as demonstrated in yesterday's front page lead over the police discovery of a major pile of stolen items at a Lansdowne address.
We don't know the complete details yet, but because we've been writing a few burglary stories
lately, the poor reporter was pestered with queries from the newsroom staff about what was contained in the haul, when he returned from the crime scene.
Plenty of what the police had found rang a bell with a story someone had written. It's already apparent that one school's loss of TV hardware could now be resolved. One reporter even wondered if her lawnmower, stolen from her shed weeks ago, would be among the collection.
Crime has fallen in Wairarapa, down 9 per cent, according to recently-released statistics.
Burglary scores among the lowest in getting a resolution, which is why it must be so satisfying for police to have such a big win. It's not surprising that burglaries are hard to resolve. It's a stealthy, (usually) non-confrontational crime dealing in mass-produced goods that can end up on auction sites on the internet. Apart from the occasional idiot who leaves blood on the scene, I can imagine police don't have a lot to go on in individual situations.
