CAT BURGLAR CAUGHT RED-PAWED TERRORISING AUCKLAND NEIGHBOURHOOD
Source: 1News (Extract)
Posted: June 15, 2023
A purring prowler has been caught red-pawed after terrorising an Auckland neighbourhood.
Lenny – also known as Klepto Lenny – lies in wait for the perfect moment to strike, before robbing his unsuspecting neighbours of their laundry as they sit out to dry.
The cat burglar’s owners, Dee and Dave Priday, told Seven Sharp they discovered his dark secret “quite a while ago”.
“We got him from the SPCA in 2021, so he was our little Covid baby and he actually started taking things from the neighbours quite early on, when he was allowed out to go [outside],” Dee explained.
“Just little things like socks and gloves and stuff like that and he’s just not looked back.
“Recently, he’s had a lot of socks, which we have given back.”
Dee said the couple created a Facebook page to help “advertise the contraband that he brings home and give the stuff back”.
While socks are the crème de la crème of his ill-gotten gains, Lenny “does mix it up a bit”.
Among his spoils are workmen’s gloves, soft toys and baby clothes, which was “a bit naughty of him”, Dee said.
“My favourite one was when he got a size 11 football boot – singular – that was too big to fit through the cat flap,” Dave added.
“We found it stuck in the cat flap.”
Another highlight was a note telling a student to go see the school principal “that obviously, he nicked before, presumably, the kid ever got it so probably got into trouble the following day for him”, he said.
Despite his proclivity for stealing, Dee said Lenny is a “really friendly little cat” who “loves going visiting people”.
“He’s just a collector. He’s really proud of himself when he brings things home,” she said.
Lenny’s escapades haven’t always been successful, however.
“He has been known to drop them on the way, though, and people find their stuff down the road,” she said.
“He’s not always into bringing them right to the door.”
While the seemingly innocent feline’s secret life has been exposed, the Pridays aren’t concerned his thieving ways may escalate.
“He’s hurting anyone – not really,” Dee said.
