Life not so swede after $200 theft

Swedes for sale at a roadside stall in Stirling, South Otago. Photo by Gerard O'Brien.
Swedes for sale at a roadside stall in Stirling, South Otago. Photo by Gerard O'Brien.

A South Otago farmer has gone off his swede after someone raided the honesty box on his swede stall at the weekend.

''I'm pissed off about it ... I can't believe someone would be so brazen,'' Stuart Murray, of Stirling, said yesterday.

The sheep farmer estimated $200 was taken, but all the swedes remained.

''They didn't take any swedes - these people don't know the value of good vegetables.

''I hope it gets whoever to wherever they deserve to go.''

Mr Murray said the honesty box was established a decade ago by one of his children to collect pocket money, and he continued to run the stall because it had built up a loyal clientele.

''All the connoisseurs of swede in the district come from near and far to get a swede,'' Mr Murray said.

These days, he collects the money to buy special treats for his grandchildren or a pint on a Friday night.

He noticed the honesty box had been tampered with several weeks ago, and believed someone was ''casing the joint'', Mr Murray said.

''They had looked at it to see how it works.''

Since then, he had discovered the root of his security problem and had improved measures around the stand with a few extra welds and a bigger padlock.

The incident has been reported to the police.

john.lewis@odt.co.nz

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