Kahukura Hahipene is upset Te Kōhanga Reo o Te Koutu's first van it had bought to transport children was stolen overnight on February 13.
A Rotorua kohanga reo is ‘‘hurting’' after its newly bought second-hand van was stolen - heartbreakingly on the night approval was given to get insurance.
Te Kōhanga Reo o Te Koutu staff are now issuing a call to action after what they said felt like a surge in people having their cars stolen. One staff member said the biggest hurt was knowing thieves had stolen from children.
The $7000 Nissan Caravan registration EYA596 van was taken overnight on February 13 from outside a property on Ariariterangi St in Ohinemutu. It had just been fitted with seven new car seats valued at $300 each.
The van was going to be used to pick up children who had parents struggling to give them rides and take them to kohanga reo. It was also planned to be used for special trips.
Kahukura Hahipene is one of Te Kōhanga Reo o Te Koutu staff reeling after their silver van was stolen. Photo / Andrew Warner
Administration worker and driver Kahukura Hahipene told the Rotorua Daily Post she felt terrible the van had been stolen from outside her home and she was confused when she walked out on the morning of February 14 to find it had gone.
“I was holding the key and looking around and then realised, ‘Oh my God, it is actually gone’.”
Hahipene said it was hard to raise the pūtea (funds) for the van because the kohanga reo was not wealthy. The van was bought in November last year, fitted with the correct anchors for car seats in December and the new carseats were bought in January for $2100.
On the night of February 13 at a kohanga reo meeting, a van policy was set in place and approval was given to get insurance. Within a few hours of that meeting, the van was gone.
Hahipene said she immediately contacted police and posted about the theft on community Facebook pages.
Two of the stolen carseats were found dumped in Western Heights.
The morning after the theft, , she was contacted by someone who had found two of the car seats dumped on the side of the road on the corner of Gordon and Island View Rds.
She said she felt so bad she was now using her own vehicle to collect some of the kohanga reo children.
Kohanga reo chairwoman Retihia Kingi said the concern for her was not just for their organisation but for other victims throughout Rotorua.
“This is happening far too much. It’s constant.”
She said she knew several others who had had their vehicles stolen in recent weeks and the victims were usually people who could least afford to replace them.
She said she called on Rotorua people to put a stop to this kind of crime by speaking up if they knew something.
She knew of a person who had their car stolen on Clinkard Ave and four other vehicles were either stolen or broken into on the same night.
“Police know who they are and they catch them but then it’s just a slap on the wrists and then they take off and do it again.”
Kahukura Hahipene (left) and Nanny Mei Rakuraku-Foster are upset Te Kōhanga Reo o Te Koutu's first van it had bought to transport children was stolen. Photo / Andrew Warner
Kohanga reo kaiako (teacher) “Nanny” Mei Rakuraku-Foster said everyone who worked hard to get the van had been affected.
“It’s been huge for our tamariki. We have not been able to pick our tamariki up and drop them off after kohanga. It’s meant we have had to reschedule some of our haerenga [trips] that we had coming up and also the whole feeling of knowing that someone has taken from our own tamariki. That’s the biggest hurt we have is knowing they have taken from our mokopuna.”
The kohanga reo van that was stolen.
Police have confirmed the van was still missing.
The Rotorua Daily Post asked police on Friday how many vehicles had been stolen during the past three weeks but police said today they were unable to release the statistics publicly because there was a process they needed to follow.
However, a police spokesman said there had been an increase in stolen vehicles in Rotorua during the past one to three years.
“The majority of these offences are committed by a relatively small group of prolific offenders, some of whom are juveniles,” the spokesman said.
Rotorua police conducted a special operation targeting this type of offending, which resulted in several arrests, referrals to youth services and the recovery of stolen vehicles, the statement said.
The vehicles most often stolen were either utility vehicles, such as Ford Courier and Toyota Hilux models, or small, compact vehicles, such as Nissan Tiida, Toyota Aqua and Mazda Demio models, usually manufactured in the late 1990s or early 2000s.
The spokesman said thieves also commonly targeted trailers.
“Vehicles are mainly stolen overnight, often from public carparks or from the roadside. Owners of these types of vehicles are encouraged to take extra measures to protect their vehicle from theft, including the use of steering wheel locks, off-street parking where possible, alarms and immobilisers, and wheel locks for trailers.”
Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.
