Christchurch Metro police area prevention manager, Inspector Glenda Barnaby, said recent crime reports reflect “a few different modus operandi at play”.
“Some offenders are taking wheels, others have been drilling petrol tanks to steal fuel, while some are stealing 4x4 vehicles for parts and burning them out.”
Barnaby said two men, aged 43 and 44, were arrested last week after allegedly stealing wheels from four cars.
In another case, a Tesla parked on Memorial Ave near Christchurch Airport had four of its wheels stolen. Motorists use Memorial Ave for ‘free’ airport parking.
The Tesla was left on wooden blocks for days before it was towed away, sparking people to share their experiences online of having cars stolen, damaged or broken into.
“I literally saw two to three cars missing their passenger side, front and rear wheels on the same patch this morning around 9.30am,” said one commenter.
Reddit user Jenny Bradley posted: “When my husband parked there for a week someone lived in his car. No damage but seat fully reclined and a lot of empty cans and takeaway boxes inside.”
Karen Swanson asked: “The big question needs to be, who is buying the stolen tyres off the thieves?”
Barnaby said police had received reports about unlawful interference involving vehicles in the Memorial Ave area.
“We have had around 10 reports over the last two months, but this is not unusual,” she said.
Last month, residents in the Edgeware and Richmond reported a spate of wheel and tyre thefts, with one hi-vis wearing thief spotted targeting vehicles.
Some SUV owners have also reported thefts of externally-mounted rear wheels from vehicles parked in driveways and residential streets.
One person posted: “Seems the scumbags are getting braver. They have been stealing spares since late last year and I guess they're feeling comfortable enough to do the mains as well. As others have said it’s not new, but I've never seen it this bad.”
Other theft victims believed the wheels were either reused on other vehicles, kept for burnouts, or sold as scrap metal.
One user said: “This is purely for scrap metal, alloy, copper etc all at pretty good prices at the moment so thieves just take anything. The 4x4 spares are extremely easy pickings with a wheel brace.”
