Dress-up burglar too hi-vis for own good

The elaborate attempted burglary was thwarted by an eagle-eyed neighbour, who spotted a man scaling the roof and called police. Photo / Martin Sykes

A man deliberately dressed like a council worker to lure an elderly woman away from her house in a plush Auckland suburb so his mate could break in, a court has been told.

The elaborate attempted burglary was thwarted by an eagle-eyed neighbour, who spotted a man scaling the roof and called police. Officers nabbed the men during their hurried getaway in a taxi.

Details of the March 12 burglary attempt were described at sentencing in Auckland District Court yesterday.

The court was told Derrin William Rowson, 24, went to Epsom with his friend, decked out in an orange hi-vis vest, just like Watercare staff working in the suburb at the time.

He knocked on the door of an elderly woman - who did not want to be named - and told her he had to show her exactly what the water upgrades entailed.

"I thought his supervisor had told him he had to," she said.

But while Rowson was walking her down the road, his 20-year-old co-offender was scaling the house in a bid to sneak in a window.

The resident realised what was going on only when she returned to the house and saw the man being called down by her neighbour.

"It was those people who saved the day, otherwise it would've been that boy in the window, taking everything and I wouldn't have known about it," she said. "When I realised what had happened it was rather frightening."

The victim said the amount of premeditation put into duping her was particularly concerning.

But in court yesterday, Rowson's lawyer John Pennick said his client had been "led astray" by his younger friend and did not know what the plan was until it was happening.

"He just knew it was a very dodgy situation," he said.

Mr Pennick told Judge Heemi Taumaunu the man's circumstances were "a bit rough" at the time after losing his job and long-term girlfriend. He was now in a more stable position, finding a job as a scaffolder and healing a rift with his father.

Judge Taumaunu sentenced Rowson to 100 hours of community work and ordered him to pay $200 for half the damage to the roof.

Though the victim was left shaken by the incident, she hoped the young men had a brighter future. "They're young and they've got all their beautiful big lives ahead of them. They just need some guidance," she said.

"Let's hope the boys turn out to be fine young men - that's all I want."

Police said the 20-year-old, also facing a charge of attempted burglary, might be offered diversion.