A Hamilton woman was left in tears on Sunday when she discovered her rental property’s cabin had been stolen in what appeared to be an elaborately planned heist.

The red cabin, built by a local business, was believed to have been hoisted onto an offender’s truck with a crane by two young men.

Neighbours thought it was a professional job, they didn’t ask questions at the time but found the operation strange to be carried out on a Sunday.

It came during renovations at the cabin’s property, a 1960s home that has been in the process of refurbishment and has had contractors come and go over recent months.

The property’s owner, Natasha Middleton, said the cabin was purchased in January this year to compliment the property when it was rented out.

“It was a way to help larger families have a place or a border to help supplement the rent - so that was the intention,” she said.

onto an offender’s truck with a crane by two young men. Photo / Supplied

After six months of its construction and even less time of ownership, the cabin was vacant on Sunday while painters were working on the house’s exterior.

Middleton was in the area that evening, she thought she’d pop by the property to check how the painters were getting on.

“Where I pull the car up is where the cabin is normally,” she said.

“It was gone. I just burst into tears - I couldn’t believe someone would do that.”

Immediately, Middleton began her enquiries.

The neighbour on one side of the property recounted that two young men had arrived at the home around lunchtime with a flatbed truck and mounted crane.

A resident living on the other side of the home said they spotted the cabin being lifted over the house, they could see the building from the air.

The property itself has a long driveway, Middleton notes the cabin itself is at the back of the house and hidden from the road - which means the offenders would need to have been on the property at some stage to scout its location.

“It’s really unnerving.”

The Hamilton resident’s personal investigation went down further routes. She posted her story on social media, and one potential sighting of the cabin in the Ōhaupō region was reported to her.

Middleton headed out to Ōhaupō, but no luck.

The neighbour on one side of the property recounted that two young men had arrived at the home around lunchtime with a flatbed truck and mounted crane. Photo / Supplied

The next step was to talk to local businesses in the area. A local dairy on Marden Rd has CCTV of the street, she’s waiting to review the footage. A local church across the road didn’t spot the Sunday theft.

Turning to local police, Middleton wanted to check the traffic cams in the area.

“There’s only so many ways out of Shakespeare Ave, it’s a locked-in residential area so they had to have gone through a main route,” she said.

Police are considering her request to check the cams, they sent a staff member to her property to gather fingerprints.

“I’m not sure what he was taking fingerprints of, the cabin was gone,” said Middleton.

“I think [the police] have bigger fish to fry in Hamilton, so I get it as far as resources are concerned - so I guess it’s up to us to track it down.”

It was no simple operation, Middleton believes, it required planning and the right technical knowledge to carry out a heist for a cabin.

She said the offenders would have needed to disassemble the deck and had low overhead electrical wires that they needed to navigate, which she’s still unsure how they accomplished.

“Those things aren’t easy to do, you have to have some smarts - you can’t just tuck it under your arm and walk off.”

An emotional Middleton said she’s very upset by the theft and hopes a lead comes through soon.

“You try very hard to provide a decent place for people to live and this is the outcome,” she said.

“Yeah, it’s a kick in the guts.”

Police have been contacted for comment.