Disappearing goldfish mysteriously return

JANIE SMITH/Central Leader

FISHY DEALINGS: Eunice Karpuk is baffled by the theft of her neighbour's fish from a backyard pool.

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Thirty large goldfish taken from a backyard aquarium in Blockhouse Bay have been anonymously returned to their home.

Eunice Karpuk is looking after the fish for a neighbour who is overseas.

She noticed they had mysteriously disappeared on February 13.

A story appeared in the Western Leader on March 4 and a few days later all the fish were back in the pool.

"Everyone I’ve told says the same thing – ‘how bizarre’," Mrs Parpuk says.

"They haven’t been brought back during the day because I would have heard or seen something.

"They must have come back during the night."

Ms Karpuk alerted pet shops when the fish, worth $100 to $150 each, went missing in case the thieves tried to sell them.

She also reported the theft to the police.

"Maybe getting the police involved put a different perspective on it," she says.

The fish appear healthy and and their owner is delighted to hear they are back.

Officer in charge of intelligence Trudi Pumipi is equally surprised by the latest development and says officers have no idea who the culprits were.

- © Fairfax NZ News