The hunt is on for two "butt plug bandits" accused of stealing sex toys from a Lower Hutt adult store.
On Sunday, two "rugged-looking" women entered the Peaches and Cream store in Petone and made off with a collection of toys.
These included two anal climaxers worth over $300 each, a Hustler brand rabbit vibrator worth over $250 and a leopard print dress worth $95. They also attempted to steal a wand vibrator worth $220.
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Newshub spoke to the staff member who caught the pair. She says they aroused suspicion when they split up after walking in.
As they went to exit, she noticed their bags had grown inside since entering the shop and gave them the opportunity to return the items.
One - who looked "pretty scared" - opened her bag, returned one item, and apologised. However the other refused to open her bag and left with unpaid-for merchandise.
"I gave her multiple chances to return the item but she said no," the staff member told Newshub.
The theft has enraged Peaches and Cream workers, who have posted images of the pair to Facebook as a warning to retailers to watch out.
"We'd rather give our attention to genuine customers. It just takes away from the customer experience when we have to be on guard," the staff member told Newshub.
"That's not what we work in our stores for. We want to work with customers."
The post has drawn much attention from the community, who have identified the women as targeting other stores in the region.
"Police have been around her house multiple times but she's never home," one person commented on Facebook.
"Probably hiding in the bedroom with her collection of buttplugs," came the reply.
A police report has been filed and police told Newshub they have completed "initial forensic analysis".
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It's not the first time the stores have been targeted. Peaches and Cream have a whole Facebook album of people caught on security camera.
"They steal lube, they steal vibrators, they steal masturbators, they steal lingerie, they steal DVDs," the Peaches and Cream CEO told Newshub.
"I think most of it would be personal use but some are stealing products to resell."
The culprits are usually taken to court and forced to reimburse the store for the products they stole.
"We don't normally want them back," the CEO says.
Newshub.
