Car linked to jewel theft racks up fees

A car linked to a group of international thieves who stole more than $770,000 of jewellery five years ago is still parked at Wellington Airport. Photo / Mark Mitch

A car linked to a group of international thieves who stole more than $770,000 of jewellery five years ago is still parked at Wellington Airport.

The car, a 2005 Honda Accord Euro used for two thefts in Auckland, is parked at the long-term carpark and is thought to have accumulated about $5000 worth of parking fees.

A report obtained through CarJam said the registration of the car expired over four years ago, on June 15, 2011.

It said the vehicle was cancelled by the New Zealand Transport Agency, likely because it had been unlicensed for too long.

The identity of the current owner had not been confirmed.

Wilson Parking, which does not operate the Wellington Airport car park, has an established protocol in relation to abandoned vehicles.

A Wilson Parking spokeswoman said once a vehicle was identified as potentially being abandoned, it was monitored for a further week by the site manager.

If it was confirmed stolen, it was relocated to police recovery.

If it was not stolen and the owner couldn't be contacted, the car would be stored and eventually deregistered and sold to cover costs.

The red Honda Accord was wanted by police after a group of South American thieves robbed foreign jewellery dealers in Auckland in 2011.

The group travelled to New Zealand on false passports, bought cellphones and hired rental cars.

They robbed $110,000 from their first victim, an Australian named John Wertheim, and two weeks later struck two Hong Kong buyers, Chin Fung Ng and Aska Lo, outside the Rydges Hotel in Federal St, robbing them of $610,000 of jewellery.