A salmon shop in Christchurch say they are "really disappointed" at the theft of fresh fish from a chiller, pies, and the attempted theft of an empty cash till.
Akaroa Salmon's sales and marketing manager Nik Mavromatis told 1News that three people entered the factory shop on Treffers Rd in Wigram just before 1am on Sunday.
He said after jimmying the door open using what appeared to be a screwdriver, the thieves stole some salmon from a fish bin straight out of the chiller.
"There wasn't a huge amount in there, given it was the end of the Saturday so we'd be cutting fresh stuff on Monday. Then also took a tray of smoked salmon as well," he said.
Mavromatis said the store also supplied salmon for the popular Fairlie Bakehouse salmon and bacon pies, saying the thieves loaded up on these too.
"There wasn't much salmon in the bin, so one of the guys you can see him sort of pointing, and the other guy goes back with his empty thing and starts loading pies.”
"They started trying to fill up on that, I guess, to make it worth their trip," he explained.
He said CCTV footage from inside the store showed the thieves go for the cash register drawer, but thankfully it was empty.
"So, they just smashed all that around and threw it on the floor and probably caused more damage than the value of things they took."
He said the shop was "off the beaten track" and the thieves "obviously knew where we were and what they wanted".
"It is weird. We don't quite know whether they’ll have a big party, or they're trying to supply someone, or I don't know."
He said it was "really disappointing" as one of the only 100% Kiwi owned salmon export stores in NZ, which was also part owned by a charitable entity of Ōnuku and Ngāti Porou.
"So it feels pretty disappointing because we're popular with the locals who love the fact they can come and buy direct from us, just in terms of getting that fresh salmon.
"The team’s not super happy about it, obviously."
Mavromatis confirmed the shop was "mostly restocked" when it reopened today, and thanked all the well wishers online for their support.
A police spokesperson said officers were called shortly before 1am Sunday to a Treffers Rd address after a report of a burglary at a commercial premises.
"Inquiries are ongoing," they said.
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