The much-loved Highway Santa who's been bringing festive cheer to people driving through Kaukapakapa in Auckland has been stolen just two days before Christmas.
The life-sized Santa has been waving cheerily from the corner of the Kaipara Coast Highway north of Auckland since 2014. The owners - a family of five - created Santa in 2014 to spread Christmas cheer to drivers on the corner of the busy road.
He changes every day - one day he might be cleaning in his dressing gown, another he might be ironing or hanging out the washing.
![Santa dressed as a road worker in 2018. Photo / Facebook](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/7BOTTYXCSHB4LBANSSHAWAR6CY.jpg?auth=548614b3b5fa554bb0d6dd197e88b7ccbe919414fa3ba4b1547517fd1b116efe&width=16&height=12&quality=70&smart=true)
And he has gained plenty of fans, who toot as they pass, take selfies with him and tag them #highwaysanta.