A Dunedin man has been charged in relation to a shoplifting spree which involved bolt cutters being stolen from a store to pilfer a bicycle parked outside, police say.
Constable Nick Turner, of Dunedin, said a 26-year-old man was believed to be responsible for almost a dozen dishonesty offences in a spree which ran from last Thursday until Monday.
Police would were grateful to the members of the public who had recorded a video of the man using bolt cutters to allegedly steal a bicycle outside Mitre 10 Mega Dunedin on Saturday.
The bolt-cutters had been stolen from inside the store, Const Turner said.
The man took the bicycle to Cash Converters, where he got someone else to take it inside to sell it, Const Turner said.
Clothing, headphones and a credit card were also believed to have been stolen by the man, Const Turner said.
Some businesses had been unaware of the thefts, although they had their suspicions, Const Turner said, but when police spoke to them "the penny dropped really quickly".
Police relied on members of the public providing the information they needed in order to solve crimes.
Const Turner encouraged people to call police.
If notified, officers could often intercept offenders in the middle of their illegal activities, he said.
Officers were grateful for any piece of information they received, particularly video and photos of offences.
"Capturing someone doing something, even if it’s quite minor, quite often will help link to other offences," Const Turner said.
The man was scheduled to appear in court this week on several charges, Const Turner said.
