Frustrating pursuit of house-sitter from hell
A Canterbury couple say their house-sitter stole cash and jewellery and even crashed their car while they were on holiday but police are too ‘‘handicapped by paperwork’’ to arrest him.
Lauren and Jonny Metcalfe were in England for 31⁄2 weeks to visit family over Christmas but when they returned they discovered the man they trusted to look after their Christchurch home had gone through their drawers, used their credit card and sold their things online.
The South African man – who was introduced to them by a ‘‘good friend’’ – stole around $6000 worth of items, including Lauren’s great-grandmother’s jewellery.
They now fear he will return to South Africa to escape police.
The man was meant to look after their dog, maintain the garden and provide some extra security while they were away.
He lived with the couple for five days before they left, paid $80 a week rent and was ‘‘the perfect house guest’’.
‘‘We were headed overseas to have Christmas with Jonny’s parents,’’ Lauren said.
‘‘About a week before we went, a good friend of Jonny’s said ‘I have a friend staying with me at the moment and I’ve got a wife and kid and it would be great if we could all have some space. Can he house-sit?’ We met him and he seemed like a good guy.’’
He moved in and everything seemed to be ok but when the couple were at Singapore Changi Airport they received a phone call, telling them their dog had got out.
‘‘We called him and he had what seemed like a valid excuse,’’ Lauren said.
They arrived home late on Monday, January 13.
‘‘As soon as we walked in we knew something was off,’’ she said.
There was evidence someone had been in their room but it was not until the following day that they realised what the man had been up to.
That evening they noticed food and alcohol were missing and were told by a neighbour people had stayed over. ‘‘We went into the liquor cupboard and there was about 14 bottles of completely empty spirits.’’
He told them he had some friends over. They told him to leave and the ‘‘devastated’’ mutual friend took him to a Christchurch backpackers.
‘‘The next morning I noticed my car had been crashed. It’s not huge but there’s a dent in the back,’’ she said.
‘‘At this point we didn’t want to believe that he would actually steal anything that wasn’t replaceable.’’
When Lauren looked at her bank account she noticed her credit card had been used to buy petrol from a BP filling station in Hoon Hay and later discovered money had been taken from her wallet and her underwear drawer.
‘‘I went for a proper look and that’s when we noticed my granddad’s and great-grandmother’s jewellery was gone, my wedding present jewellery and my watch and that’s the really heartbreaking stuff.’’
At that point the couple phoned the police but despite providing the man’s whereabouts they said they have had no assistance due to ‘‘red-tape’’.
‘‘The lady at the desk (said) ‘even if someone picks it up now it will take another full day for them to complete paperwork before they can arrest him and they won’t arrest him at the border because it costs New Zealand money’,’’ Lauren said.
‘‘We’re unhappy with the police as an entity, not the individuals that we’ve dealt with.’’
They have phoned the police at least six times and visited Christchurch Police Station twice but they say they were told there was insufficient evidence to arrest the man or stop him from leaving the country.
A police spokesperson said they were ‘‘following active lines of inquiry’’.
The man was contacted for comment.
‘‘We’re unhappy with the police as an entity, not the individuals that we’ve dealt with.’’ Lauren Metcalfe