Andre Tibor Kalmancsi, 33, and his accomplice Glengyle James Greenhorn, 40, stole $140,000 worth of stored goods. Photo / Supplied
A man employed at a Napier storage warehouse turned up to work like nothing had happened days after carrying out a sophisticated and planned heist of the building.
Andre Tibor Kalmancsi, 33, and his accomplice Glengyle James Greenhorn, 40, stole $140,000 worth of stored goods, including five new jetskis, from freight company Combined Logistics in Ahuriri on January 16.
At 5.26am the pair gained entry into the office of the warehouse and took a set of keys for a Mitsubishi truck which was used to carry freight.
Conveniently, the vehicle was the only one in the fleet to not have GPS installed.
They then used a forklift to load five large boxes containing the gleaming Yamaha jet skis onto the back of the truck.
A pallet containing boxes of vape juice - an alternative to smoking cigarettes - also caught their attention, so they cut it open and took five boxes worth $17,766 before loading it into the truck and leaving the warehouse.
According to the summary of facts, Greenhorn took the truck out to Raukawa on January 17.
A T-shirt was then soaked in diesel from the tank, spread around the cabin, and the $20,000 truck was set ablaze.
Kalmancsi, who was employed by Combined Logistics between October 2018 and January 2019, pleaded guilty to burglary, theft and methamphetamine supply charges in an audio-visual link appearance at the Napier District Court before Judge Geoff Rea on Wednesday.
Combined Logistics manager Audrey Young said the loss of the jet skis and the truck was devastating for her business.
Not only had the team lost a vehicle, but Kalmancsi had also left the once-pristine warehouse in a complete shambles, she said.
"We've lost clients because of this. It's just absolutely devastating, everything was insured but it certainly didn't make things easy for us."
"This wasn't a small truck, it was class-four, one of seven that we use for our business, and the loss really put us behind in the busy season."
Young said she only found out what Kalmancsi had done after he had been dismissed from the business on an unrelated matter.
She said he never gave any indication he was behind the raid, continuing to show up for work as usual.
"Not only did he rob us, he showed up for work again a few days later. It was unbelievable."
The investigation into the robbery had a breakthrough after police obtained production orders on Kalmancsi and Greenhorn's cell phones.
When spoken to by police, Greenhorn, who admitted burning the truck, said he was in "a bad place" and needed some money.