Thefts crush dying woman

CHRIS HILLOCK/Waikato Times

HIT HARD: Tina Gosnell with her god-daughter, Ozyours Hopa. Ms Gosnell has been targeted by thieves three times in two weeks.

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Tina Gosnell thought things couldn't get much worse – but a car thief has made sure they have.

The mother of three, who is dying from cancer, has just been hit by thieves for the third time in two weeks.

This time they took her car. Last time they took almost every item of value from her Nawton home in Hamilton.

"I had just bought my dream car, a Subaru Legacy B4, and they took it. I had just bought my dream TV, and they took it. It is just not fair," she said.

Two weeks ago Ms Gosnell returned from a trip to Turangi to find her cellphone, her son's bike and her daughter's laptop were missing.

On Monday she got a phone call from her whangai (adopted) daughter asking where the television was. When she got home from work she realised that someone had broken in and stolen a range of items including the TV, two remaining laptops, an Xbox 360, clothes and some cash.

Believing that it couldn't get any worse, Ms Gosnell got ready to leave for work yesterday morning only to find her car was no longer parked in the driveway.

She thought a friend may have put it in the garage for her, but her heart sank when she opened the door and it wasn't there.

Ms Gosnell, who turns 40 in May, said she was gutted because she had terminal cancer and now felt she had nothing left to leave her children.

She was diagnosed with bowel, ovarian and cervical cancer in December, 2006. She has been in remission twice but each time the cancer came back.

This time around she has been told that the treatment she has received has been ineffective and she will most likely die.

"They said they couldn't say how much longer I have got but they said months rather than years."

She has insurance but said she won't be able to replace the photos stored on the computers nor will she be able to wipe away the memory of the thefts from her children's minds.

"My 14-year-old son was obviously heartbroken because there will be no photos to remind him of me when I am gone."

Ms Gosnell said she had a fair idea who had stolen her car but was still waiting to hear the latest from the police. Yesterday, friends and family were driving around Hamilton looking for the stolen car.

- © Fairfax NZ News