Aston Webster knew he was getting the Lego set he'd been craving for months on his seventh birthday, but when the big day came, he was shocked by what he found inside.
Aston's mum, Kimberley Webster, says it was obvious the toys inside were not genuine Lego pieces.
"He opened it, and within seconds he was like, 'There is something wrong here. Stop, don't open any bags, dad!'"
Instead of the highly sought-after 'Star Wars Death Star - Final Duel' set worth $159.99, the box was full of a cheaper 'police kit' set made by Kre-O.
Ms Webster says it appears someone had purchased the set previously and replaced it with an alternative product, in the hope they could return it to the store to get their money back without the shopkeeper realising the Lego contents had been stolen.
"The box has got a thumb index end where you are supposed to put your thumb in and rip it," says Ms Webster.
"The [previous buyers] had gone in from the other end and used a blade to cut the end open, pulled out the guts and hot glue-gunned it back down. Once we tipped out the contents you could feel the glue on the end -- otherwise there is no way you would know it had been tampered with, and they would have got away with it."
Aston's seventh birthday quickly turned from excitement to bitter disappointment.
"Not one thing in the box was Lego -- the whole kit had been pulled out," says Ms Webster. "He burst into tears, and we were trying to tell him we couldn't do anything because it was Easter Sunday and everything is closed."
The Websters purchased the box online from The Warehouse in Pakuranga, who sent it to the Pukekohe branch for them to pick up.
When they returned the box to the Pukekohe branch, they happily organised a replacement set. The shopkeeper said she was aware of similar cases.
"She said she hadn't seen this particular incident at that branch, however they are getting mobile phones returned with clay inside at that branch," says Ms Webster.
Julia Morton, a spokesperson for The Warehouse, was happy to hear the Websters were able to get what they wanted in the end.
She says there hasn't been a spate of fake products being returned, but it is an issue they are keeping an eye on.
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