Tasty Reward Offered for Tyre Vandal’s Capture

With tyre vandalism becoming such an endemic problem everywhere, vehicle owners often find themselves the victims of a crime that causes significant inconvenience and expense, yet is not considered serious enough to warrant substantial police attention. Those affected usually have no choice but to ‘take it on the chin’ and put the unpleasantness behind them. But one canny victim of tyre vandalism has unleashed a secret weapon in the fight to bring the culprits to justice.

The evening of April 21 began like any other Saturday night in the New Zealand town of Blenheim, but the deceptive peace of the twilight hours was soon shattered by the shrill hissing of air escaping from punctured rubber. The hard working people of Blenheim had become the victims of an enigmatic character local media has dubbed the “tyre stabber.”

A total of 132 tyres on 50 cars were punctured in car parks and dealerships across Blenheim’s central business district during the course of Saturday night, including four tyres on a car belonging to Domino’s Pizza. And when they messed with those tyres, they messed with Domino’s takeaway owner Chris Donnelly, who has retaliated with a gesture that may lead to names being named and the elusive tyre stabber brought to justice.

Has he appealed to the tyre stabber’s sense of decency? Nope. Has he implored witnesses to step forward and clear their conscience? Don’t be ridiculous….Mr. Donnelly drew on the experience gained in his chosen profession and offered an incentive guaranteed to strain loyalties within Blenheim’s tyre stabbing community to breaking point – a year’s supply of free pizza for whoever leads police to the culprit.

“A lot of people have been victimised by this mindless vandalism and I am hopeful that this reward will motivate someone into helping the police lead to a conviction,” Mr. Donnelly told New Zealand media. “I would like to do anything possible to increase the chances of tracking down those responsible.”

With such a tempting offer now out there it may only be a matter of time before late night pangs of hunger drive one of the tyre stabber’s associates to make that fateful telephone call to Blenheim police. But a note of caution must be added – while police are bound to treat such reports confidentially, staunch member’s of Blenheim’s tyre stabbing underworld may have little difficulty finding the Judas amongst their number. They simply need to look for the person who gains the most weight during the coming year.