Attempted lawn theft investigated by Palmerston North police

Security camera footage shows the man rolling up the lawn and stuffing it into a wheelie bin.

A person who tried to steal someone’s lawn out of their backyard has been captured on security camera.

A Palmerston North resident took to social media today looking for information about the mystery man, who was spotted hopping the fence of a Hokowhitu property and helping himself to the resident’s greenery.

“Do you know this man? He climbed over the back fence into my backyard stealing the roll-out lawns,” the resident wrote on Facebook.

Images posted on the page show the man rolling up lines of lawn and stuffing them into a wheelie bin.

A police spokesman confirmed the incident happened under the cover of night on August 23.

Police received a report of an attempted grass theft from a residential address on Ashford Avenue, Hokowhitu, around 2.40am,” the spokesman said.

“The grass was located in a bin the following day.

“If you know or recognise the person pictured please contact police on 105 and reference file number: 230913/5547.”

Commenters on the Facebook post queried whether the victim had recently had the lawn installed but hadn’t yet paid for it. Some joked the incident might have been a case of lawn-repossession in the dead of night.

Others noted it was likely someone who knew the victim had recently had the lawn put in, questioning whether it could be a friend, neighbour, or even someone from the lawn company.

“This person legit stole land,” someone said.

“In my day they stole much more interesting grass than this, and it was the real thing, too. They don’t make thieves like they used to,” one person joked.

Others made a light-hearted dig at the Green Party New Zealand.

Melissa Nightingale is a Wellington-based reporter who covers crime, justice and news in the capital. She joined the Herald in 2016 and has worked as a journalist for 10 years.