A five-foot tall, fibreglass sheep with a Kiwiana coat has been re-ewe-nited with its owner, nearly a week after it was stolen from outside their home.
For 11 years, the beloved fibreglass kiwiana themed sheep statue was a local landmark in the leafy suburb of St Heliers, Auckland.
Barbara — pronounced "baaa-bra" — was seemingly lifted from her patch of grass in the middle of the night. Owner Stewart Germann believed thieves climbed over his fence, opened the gate from the inside and lifted Barbara onto a trailer and took off.
Last night, neighbour and Seven Sharp reporter Daniel Faitaua lifted Barbara back to Germann’s front lawn.
“She’s a bit grubby but she’s home now. This is fantastic,” Germann’s wife Janice said.
There's about five sheep for every person in New Zealand, but for Germann, this colourful ewe is one of a kind.
"Barbara is part of the family," Germann told Seven Sharp. "We've got a Schnauzer dog younger than Barbara, she's been here 11 years… she just means a lot."
Germann bought Barbara for $3500 at a charity auction, describing the Kiwiana statue as a "talking point".
"She's very bright and she's iconic [with her] jandals, Mr Four Square, Buzzy Bee… she's unique."
Police confirmed the brazen burglary happened sometime between 7pm on Wednesday 11 October and 7am Thursday 12 October.
“At this stage our enquiries are ongoing and Police will be reviewing available CCTV footage” a police spokesperson said.
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