Police find stolen goods from Taranaki baches burgled amid Covid lockdown

Thousands of dollars worth of items were stolen from five baches in Awakino. Photo / Google Maps

Police discovered a storage unit containing thousands of dollars worth of stolen diving equipment and other outdoor items pinched from holiday homes in Awakino while the area was under Covid-19 restrictions.

In November last year, a number of burglaries were reported by bach owners in Awakino, a small coastal settlement in the Waitomo District about 90km north of New Plymouth.

Most of the holiday homes in the area were empty at the time because parts of the country, including Awakino, were in Covid-19 alert level 3.

A large number of items were stolen from five baches including a weed burner, gas cylinder, a deep-sea dive helmet, binoculars, an electric longline beach fishing system called a Seahorse Kontiki, a woodchipper smoker, a wetsuit, and dive and snorkelling equipment.

The property amassed a total value into the thousands; the Seahorse Kontiki had a price tag of around $5000 alone.

Police later received information that there was a New Plymouth storage unit believed to contain all of the stolen gear and a search of the unit since turned up all of the items.

The amount of property discovered was so extensive it took police a lengthy period to itemise it all, a police summary of facts said.

Following the discovery of the property, Kerry McAllister, 30, was arrested and charged with two representative counts of receiving property (over $1000).

On Thursday, he appeared via audio-visual link from prison custody in New Plymouth District Court where he pleaded guilty to the charges and a number of drug-related offences.

He also admitted being in possession of 3.68g of cannabis, two LSD tabs, 2.27g of methamphetamine, and 38.49g of cannabis resin.

He further admitted receiving property (over $1000) namely a stolen vehicle, and stealing $30 of petrol.

Judge Gregory Hikaka ordered a pre-sentence and referred some of the matters to restorative justice.

He was remanded to return for sentencing on May 10.