Caught on camera: Christmas grinch steals festive lights from front yard

A THIEF has been filmed stealing at least five illuminated Christmas trees from a Christmas display at the front of a house in Klemzig — the latest in a spate of festive light thefts.

• Thief steals Croydon front yard
• Man arrested for stealing $5000 of plants from front garden
• 6m-long music sculpture stolen from Kensington home
• MAP: Check out all of Adelaide’s Christmas lights

THE grinch is known for stealing Christmas, but, this time, he stole festive lights from a front yard.

At least five illuminated Christmas trees were stolen from Alyssa and Joseph Carnevale’s Klemzig home on Saturday, December 9, CCTV footage showed.

It was the latest in a spate of decorative light thefts from local homes in the past few weeks.

Mrs Carnevale said it was not the first time their home had been targeted.

“This time last year, someone used my neighbours bin, wheeled it to the front of our bedroom and attempted stealing the Christmas lights along our gutter,” Mrs Carnevale said.

“Although the total value of goods stolen was only $60, we only got to enjoy our new Christmas lights for a week and a half.

Alyssa and Joseph Carnevale had some of their Christmas lights stolen on Saturday from their Klemzig home. Picture: AAP / Dean Martin

“It’s very disheartening when you spend a lot of time, effort and money enjoying the holiday season, then to have someone to take it away from you.”

This latest theft follows two more last month.

On November 19, Lara Brook of Surrey Downs found five lights had been stolen from her Illyarrie Ave home — just hours after they were installed.

One of the missing lights — carrying a Santa Claus message — had been chosen by her three-year-old daughter, Addison.

“She was pretty excited, with the pageant the day before, to help dad out,” Mrs Brook said.

“The thing that she was most excited with was a ‘Santa Please Stop Here’ sign she got from Bunnings.

“She picked out her little spot in the garden to put it.”

Adding insult to injury, the family are helping the Huntington’s disease charity in a combined effort with a neighbour, with a fundraising sign outside.

That sign survived, but the Christmas mood of goodwill — along with a sense of neighbourhood peace — has been affected.

“Our neighbours have had family members affected (by the disease),” Mrs Brook said.

“At every bit of noise I’d wake up, I’d go out and check nobody else had taken the rest of the lights.”

The incident occurred shortly after Christmas lights were stolen from another property in the Tea Tree Gully area. The owner reported the theft on Facebook, but has since deleted the post.

Police are investigating.