There's been a happy ending for a young Kiwi musician who had thousands of dollars worth of music equipment stolen on Sunday.
Bella Bavin, who is the guitarist and vocalist for indie rock band Coast Arcade, told 1News she had just finished rehearsing at a music studio in Auckland's Ponsonby when the items were taken.
She said the studio is down a private driveway and she had just loaded her gear into her car and locked it, before running back inside to grab something.
"I came back five minutes later, the boot was open, my guitar and cables were gone, I freaked out obviously because this thing is my whole world.
"I was so upset, gutted, you know I was devastated."
Bavin was then sent CCTV footage by the studio manager, which showed a man walking his dog near the studio earlier that day.
Then, footage from later in the night showed the same man walking away from the studio with Bavin's guitar.
"We then took to Facebook with a post saying my guitar's been stolen with photos, and photos of the security footage and that post has just gone everywhere."
Bavin said police recovered the items from a man's house on Wednesday afternoon, with police telling her social media was the main reason they were able to catch the thief.
She said her post appealing to the public for help reached almost 150,000 people on Facebook alone.
In a social media post on Wednesday night, Bavin wrote: "After three long days, my guitar has finally made its way back to me.
"I've been blown away by the amount of support I have received. My post has been shared so far and wide by so many people. I've had hundreds of messages, offers of help, and people asking if I need to borrow gear.
"I feel incredibly lucky and grateful for all the love, I know getting stolen back stuff is not always the outcome."
Coast Arcade are set to perform in Auckland this weekend, celebrating the release of their new music and New Zealand music month.
Police said in a statement this afternoon the outcome is a “great result”.
“A crisis was averted, and a musician’s gig will go ahead this weekend after Auckland Police recovered her stolen guitar.”
Sergeant Geoff Baber said a 56-year-old man has been charged with theft and is due to appear in Auckland District Court.
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