Thieves target multiple Rotorua businesses: 'Mentally, it's torture'

Rotorua CBD businesses have been targeted by thieves for the second time this week.

Thieves broke into The PC Hutt on Tutanekai St and Rotorua Fresh on Eruera St early this morning, helping themselves to multiple items from both.

It's the second time in five months The PC Hutt has been targeted. Thieves smashed through the store's doors and took phones, iPads, and speakers in December last year.

The PC Hutt owner Pardeep Kumar said around 3.10am today, two people smashed the store window with a hammer and stole money, phones, headphones, and gaming controllers.

Kumar, who has CCTV footage of the incident, said the two people then came back at 3.30am and 3.35am to take more items from the store, despite the alarm sounding the entire time.

Thieves broke glass cabinets at The PC Hutt on Tutanekai St. Photo / David Beck

He said, after being targeted twice, every time the phone rang in the early hours of the morning his heart started beating faster, expecting the worst.

"Mentally, it is torture. We are usually busy in the long weekend and we can not replace these products in time.

"We have a young daughter. Every time this happens we have to get her out of bed and come here. It is disrupting," Kumar said.

Thieves took headphones, phones and gaming controllers from The PC Hutt. Photo / David Beck

A police spokeswoman confirmed they were notified just before 4am of a burglary to a commercial premise on Tutanekai St in Rotorua.

Rotorua Fresh owner Digraj Baghela said two people smashed the glass in the front door of his store and took money from the till about 3.30am.

"It makes me feel very angry," he said.

"It's not just the money. We have to pay for insurance and get the window fixed. Customers don't come in because they see the window is broken.

"We do deliveries as well and this morning we were late for all of them because we had to wait for police to get fingerprints and everything."

Baghela called for more night patrols following a spate of break-ins this week.

"We will do our part but that is not solving the problem. We have already stopped selling cigarettes because of the issues it caused with break-ins.

"The police should take very strict action because at the moment there is no fear for the thieves to break in anywhere - they don't think they will be caught.

Rotorua Fresh owner Digraj Baghela was left frustrated when his store was broken into. Photo / David Beck

"They tell us to make sure we have insurance and leave the till open so if they do break-in, they don't damage it. That's like saying you might as well leave the door open. People should be scared to rob shops."

Spate of break-ins

On Monday night police were called to a spate of break-ins in the Rotorua CBD.

A window was smashed at the Aquatic Centre.

A spokeswoman from the centre confirmed no one had entered the premises and nothing was stolen.

Rotorua Lakes Council sport, recreation and environment manager Rob Pitkethley said Watchdog Security was alerted by waste disposal contractors who drove past and saw the damage.

Watchdog contacted Rotorua Aquatic Centre staff and the police, he said.

He believed no one entered the centre as nothing had been touched and the internal alarms were not activated.

Another incident happened at the takeaway shop, Oppies on Fenton St just before 4am.

A police spokeswoman said it appeared soft drinks were taken.

The next incident was about 40 minutes later with a report of a smashed window at Farmers on Amohau St.

Backdoor, on Tutanekai St, had its window broken by a brick about 6.45am that morning.