Australia Post delivery error unravels 18-month mystery over ‘stolen’ item

It’s not often that a resident is happy to have their package delivered to the wrong address, but this week a mistake by an Australia Post worker paid off, ending an 18-month mystery.

On Monday, a Sydney resident received notification that the package he was expecting had been delivered to his home. However, he was unable to find it after searching for it outside his property.

They decided to check the photo that the postman had sent them and realized that the package had been mistakenly delivered to the next-door neighbor’s house. Curiously, it was placed next to something that looked quite familiar to them.

“In the photo was my plot, and next to my plot was my now dying philodendron,” the resident wrote on social media, sharing the image in question.

The plant mysteriously disappeared the day the resident and her husband moved into the duplex a year and a half ago. Amid the chaos of moving their belongings, the plant was left on the enclosed front porch among the plants left behind by the owner while furniture was rearranged and belongings were moved into the property.

“We both made the mistake of forgetting to bring it and in the morning it was gone. We were both convinced it was still there the night before… but it disappeared within nine or ten hours,” the resident said.

The plants are next to each other several years apart, and the one on the right looks visibly unhealthy compared to the first one. The plants are next to each other several years apart, and the one on the right looks visibly unhealthy compared to the first one.

The missing plant (left) and the one found on the neighbor’s property (right). Source: Reddit

The resident said he was deeply saddened when the plant mysteriously disappeared, explaining that it was “a healthy plant,” unlike many of the other plants he had worked hard to keep in good condition as a “plant hobbyist.”

“I still feel stupid for having left it outside without care, but I couldn’t get over the fact that it was only there for one night until it was stolen,” he said. “I felt uneasy because someone had been watching us as we moved around the whole time… I finally moved on and just accepted that the plant was gone, until today.”

The resident knows it is the same plant because it remains in the same pot, one he made by hand.

After sharing his discovery online, many Australians encouraged the resident to return to the front porch and take what is “rightfully” his, possibly even knocking on the door to summon the neighbour.

“The relationship is already screwed because they stole,” wrote one, while many people urged the resident to “return the theft.”

The resident confirmed that they did recover it and was eager to hear “whatever shit” the neighbors had to say, however, it is unknown if there was a confrontation.

Australia Post responds to plant theft

The Australia Post app allows Australians to track deliveries and search for photographic evidence of a package’s delivery location and Australia Post is pleased in this instance to have helped the resident find the plant.

“The AusPost app is available for free from the Apple or Google Play stores and we are delighted to have helped reunite this lost philodendron with its owner,” an Australia Post spokesperson said.

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