Police arrest 12 people, work to return 5000 stolen items after burglary ring busted

Some of the items recovered by police. Photo / NZ Police

More than 12 people have been arrested as part of a burglary ring in Wellington – and police are slowly working through returning 5000 stolen items to their owners.

Operation Trump Card began early last year, and saw police seize thousands of items of stolen property including bikes, tools and laptops. Police are now working through all the items and trying to match them with reports of stolen property dating back three years.

Detective Senior Sergeant Tim Leitch said the process is proving to be a lengthy one.

“We have found that in many cases only limited property details were provided at the time of the initial reporting.”

“We ask the owners of stolen property, particularly if it is unique or has an identifiable feature, marking, or a known serial number to contact police and provide this additional information.”

Despite the difficulty in returning items, police have made good headway. So far 93 of the 298 bikes, 10 of 29 e-scooters and 11 of 49 laptops have been identified and will be returned to owners or insurance companies.

“A large number of distinctive bikes, tools, builders’ equipment and other items are still to be identified. Anyone that has property stolen that has not reported the theft, is encouraged to do so, and provide a description of their item.”

Leitch says further arrests in Operation Trump Card have not been ruled out.