Fraud victims return to Hawke's Bay, find last of belongings stolen

A recognisable 2m by 500cm artwork showing a rifle in 50 layers of carved acrylic paint is the most treasured stolen possession of the Gifford family. Photo/Supplied

Nearly a decade since leaving Hawke's Bay, fraud victims have returned to find the last of the belongings from their old life stolen.

Former Hastings residents John and SuellenGifford moved back to the region earlier this year, having left after Mr Gifford's company was victim in a $4 million fraud case.

Between 2005 and 2008 former Pioneer Insurance general manager Blair Fitzsimons drew down three cheques totalling $3 million from the company's ASB account - with Pioneer's founding shareholders, Mr Gifford and Rob Elvidge, caught up in the fallout.

After their former colleague was sent to prison, both were forced to sell their houses - with the Giffords auctioning off their $2.2 million Tuki Tuki Rd home, and leaving the region in 2009.

The couple had stored most of their remaining furniture from their old home in a container, which was packed in Hastings and kept on a section in Te Awanga - where they hoped to move the items into a new, smaller, home.

But returning three months ago to the region where both grew, Mrs Gifford said they discovered about a third of their belongings from the container had been stolen - about $20,000 worth.

"It just makes it really difficult to settle down again," she said. "We left under quite traumatic circumstances. It's hard to come back when this sort of things is going on.

"That's the last of anything we had left."

Although couches, a French dresser, and a chess board were among the stolen items, Mrs Gifford said she was most upset about the theft of two bespoke pieces - a 2004 artwork, and two elm tables.

The Hannah Jensen artwork was more than 2m long, and used 50 layers of carved acrylic paint to depict a rifle. This was one of the artist's first pieces, and "our whole family fell in love with it".

The tables had been designed by local furniture maker Peter Maclean, built with salvaged elm from a tree near their old house.

The couple were appealing for anyone who has seen their stolen items to pass on any information to the police.

"I'd like to think that people who steal ... understand it's not a good thing to do. It's very traumatic for the people who have been involved in these crimes," Mrs Gifford said. "It has caused me huge anxiety. A lot of these pieces are irreplaceable."

A police spokeswoman said they had looked into the burglary, but there was no evidence to enable them to identify an offender.

In 2008 Mr Fitzsimons was sentenced to four and a halfyears in prison. He was paroled in April 2011.

In the years that followed, Mr Gifford and Mr Elvidge battled with ASB Bank, which started bankruptcy action against the two businessmen in 2009.

In 2015 the pair took action against ASB, seeking $3.79 million in damages alleging the bank had no mandate to honour the cheques which Fitzsimons drew and saying it failed in its duty to warn Pioneer of the thefts.

- If you have seen the pictured items ring Hastings Police on 06 870 4925, reference number 170826/0684.