A retiree whose ute was stolen from outside his Shelbourne St home last month has been reunited with it, albeit in an unusable state.
Ian Henbrey told the Nelson Weekly last month that his 1993 Ford courier was stolen from outside his home at about 4am.
Last week, he received a call from police after a member of the public recognised the vehicle dumped in Richmond Forest.
"The location indicates the thieves are local people. The police organised for it to be towed out of the forest to a local yard. But no comment on condition."
When Ian arrived at the yard, he says he was devastated by what he found.
"I was shocked and saddened to see how the vehicle had been brutally butchered, possibly for someone’s rust repair parts. I felt the carefully maintained 33-year-old vehicle had been aggressively violated.
"The doors, the seats, the battery, the air filter etc. had been removed but interestingly the front windscreen had been aggressively cut out probably with an angle grinder cutting through the vehicles roof, the front windscreen subframe and the front dash. Leaving a gaping hole and a ghastly mess. It was a sorry sight indeed."
Ian says a police officer was at the yard attempting to take fingerprints from the vehicle.
"So confused by the mess, I asked him if he thought this was the work of someone in the parts trade. He said no because it’s not difficult to unbolt parts or to remove the windscreen by first removing the rubber seal that holds the screen in place.
"So maybe this was not a professional job in his opinion, and it didn’t look like it with all the jagged rough-edged saw cuts. And only certain parts were taken."
Ian believes the age of the vehicle may help explain why it was targeted.
"With age, some vehicle parts wear out, and some parts have a tendency to rust out, in particular the windscreen subframe has that tendency to rust out over the long term. The vehicle then leaks and will eventually fail a Warrant of Fitness. So maybe that’s the thieves motivation.
"Being a 33-year-old vehicle its difficult to get parts for it, particularly parts of the subframe.
"So it seems possible that the windscreen and subframe were cut out to fit to another vehicle to achieve a new WOF. Not difficult if you have welding ability.”
Another theory is that the thieves are rebuilding the same type of vehicle, and will need recertification, something only done at a couple of local locations.
Despite the damage, Ian hopes the unusual nature of the theft could lead to answers.
"My guess is that there could be a local WOF inspector who notices a similar vehicle that has recently been rebuilt with possibly stolen parts, particularly around the windscreen assembly.
"Maybe there’s the possibility the thieves will get caught. Either way, now I have some idea of why my 33-year-old ute could get stolen.
"And I now know where it ended up, the Richmond forest."
