A family-owned supermarket in Pukekohe, south of Auckland, has been hit by two burglaries in as many nights, with police arresting five people following the second break-in early this morning.
The IndoKiwi Supermarket on Hall St was targeted twice by burglars on Friday and Saturday.
Co-owner Arshdeep Singh said the first burglary took place at around 4am on Friday morning.
“Three people smashed through the main glass door and broke in to steal whatever they could grab — chocolate, lollies, toffees,” he told 1News.
Police were notified around 7.50am on Saturday after staff discovered the aftermath of the burglary.
However, less than 24 hours later, the same thing happened again.
Singh, who was anticipating another break-in, had set his security cameras to alert him and watched live as five intruders broke in.
“They smashed another part of the door; broke in; grabbed the till over the counter and made a mess in the shop; breaking eggs and everything. One guy went straight for the till, while the others went around the shop grabbing drinks, chocolate, whatever they could get their hands on.”
He said he called police while watching the cameras and officers were able to locate and arrest the group.
“A 19-year-old man is due in Pukekohe District Court on July 16 on a burglary charge, and four other young people will undergo a youth process,” a police spokesperson said.
Police could not confirm whether the burglaries were linked, saying “inquiries are ongoing in both circumstances”.
The cost of the losses and damage to the store was “sitting at easily $25-30 grand”, Singh said.
“The till itself cost around $10-15 grand.”
He said they were the first break-ins in 18 months that his family had operated from Hall St.
“It’s very hard, a lot of hard work went into the shop,” he said.
“I start my day at 4am, finish at 9pm, sleep at 11, and start again the next day at 4. It’s hard at this stage for retail business — a kick in the backside, frankly.”
