Newlyweds' gifts raided from car

Tina Cachemaille-Beattie and Henry Beattie say they found their vehicle's window smashed and all of their wedding presents gone. Photo / Tania Whyte

Henry Beattie and Tina Cachemaille-Beattie should have been celebrating their first day as a married couple but instead were "gutted" to find the window to their car smashed and all their wedding gifts taken.

The newlyweds from Morningside, Whangarei said "I do" on Saturday, and on Sunday woke up to find their Toyota Highlander had been broken into and all their wedding gifts, including a large amount of cash, had been stolen.

The couple had just celebrated their big day with about 120 guests at the Onerahi Yacht Club.

After spending the evening with family and friends the couple headed to the Quest Hotel where they spent the night together. The carpark at the hotel was full so they parked on Cameron St about 11pm.

"Something in my head said just go home and then come back, but I said no," said Mrs Cachemaille-Beattie. "The next morning we came out and I said 'you little [thieves]'."

The window was smashed and the boot-load of wedding presents, which had been covered in a white sheet, had been taken.

"They'd gone through the whole thing," said Mr Beattie. "My wife was crying in the street."

The couple contacted police straight away. Mrs Cachemaille-Beattie said the thieves had stolen hundreds of dollars worth of premium alcohol, a phone, earrings and some presents which had not yet been opened. She said they had also taken cards containing money the couple had asked for in lieu of gifts so they could renovate their home.

"We are gutted," said Mr Beattie.

The couple are involved with the community, including helping with organising entertainment for the Laneway late night event on Fridays and have helped to organise several other events in Whangarei.

The couple said the incident had not ruined their wedding day and they are waiting on CCTV footage from the night of the incident.