MAKETU MAILBOX VANDALISED BY 'YOUTHS' AND, ACCORDING TO ONE WITNESS, A POSSUM
Residents reckon the tagging is bad enough. The possum has made it personal.
Four mailboxes on a Maketu street were tagged overnight. A fifth appears to have been chewed by a possum with strong opinions.
The damage was found on Wednesday morning by Denise Fowlie, 71. She was on her way out to collect a parcel that hadn't arrived. "Marker pen I could scrub. This is proper paint. And the possum's had a go at the flag on mine, which was Gerald's handiwork before he passed."
A neighbour, Rex Tumahai, said he'd heard "a hell of a racket" around 1am. He assumed it was the usual crowd walking back from the pub. "Turns out it was the usual crowd AND a possum. Multi-agency operation, wasn't it."
Tauranga City Council said mailbox repairs were the owner's problem. Possums, they said, were a regional council matter. The regional council said graffiti was "a police issue" and possums only mattered "if it's in a reserve". The mailbox is not in a reserve.
Police have asked anyone with information about the youths to come forward. Witnesses described "three of them, hoodies, one on a scooter that squeaked". The possum has not been identified.
The rude word is still on the mailbox. Fowlie is waiting on turps.
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Reader Letters
★ JoannePetone
Honestly, teenagers and possums? That's a new one even for the Hutt! Fair enough expecting local councils to help, but seems like Maketu's passing the buck.
★ Margaret_F
Wouldn't have happened in '89 when standards mattered! Blame the youth today, always up to mischief without any respect.
couchgremlin
@Margaret_F, maybe they should've just used some decent bloody kerb paint. Youths these days can't even vandalise properly!
★ BarryBishopdale
It's all the bloody council's fault. They should've sorted out these possums ages ago, but then again, they can't do anything right!
wayne1987
Barry, mate, that's not how the council works. You can't expect them to manage every possum and teenager in the area.
Trev_Hornby
That's just horseshit.
Garry (Halswell)
In my day, a possum was harmless fun and a scooter was just a kid's toy. What's happening in Maketu?
tired_in_riccarton
Rex must be taking the piss to suggest a possum was in on this. Next, they'll say the kerb itself was marked by aliens!
kiwijoker
The police chasing hoodies on scooters? Sounds like an average Saturday night! They'll never catch the cheeky possum, though.
MumOf3_Tauranga
Hope they catch those buggers! What's next? Tagging sheep? Honestly, the situation is rooted.
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