At a Glance
- Kate Gosselin claims she saw an attempted robbery in a New Zealand grocery store on Jan. 17
- The reality star says her boyfriend, ex-cop Steve Neild, helped chase the suspect
- Gosselin, recovering from a leg fracture, says the thief nearly knocked her down
- Why it matters: The incident comes just days after she took her first unassisted steps in 82 days
Kate Gosselin’s New Zealand vacation took a dramatic turn when she says a man tried to steal a full shopping cart and was chased by a group of shoppers, including her boyfriend, former bodyguard Steve Neild.
The Alleged Incident
On Saturday, Jan. 17, the Jon & Kate Plus 8 alum posted a TikTok video showing the aftermath of what she described as an attempted theft inside a local grocery store. Gosselin, 50, claimed a man was pushing a “trolley” loaded with unpaid merchandise toward the exit when several male shoppers intervened.
“You should see all the Kiwi men running after him, trying to stop him,” she said from behind the camera. “Everybody’s on their phone to the police. It’s a big deal here, because honestly guys, there’s not much crime here.”
Gosselin said the suspect lost a shoe while fleeing and that she kicked it farther away “to slow him down.” She praised the bystanders who gave chase, estimating that “six or eight” shoppers pursued the man.
Personal Risk
The incident was especially tense for Gosselin, who has been recovering from a fractured leg she sustained in September 2025 while playing with her dog, Meika. Just three days earlier, on Jan. 14, she had announced that she walked without assistance for the first time since the injury.
“He literally pushed past me, almost knocked me down in my lack of walking state,” she recalled. “I had an injury, so I can just now walk, and it sent me off my feet for a second.”
Neild’s ‘Cop’ Instinct
Gosselin highlighted her boyfriend’s role in the pursuit. Neild, a former law-enforcement officer, was seen in the clip helping to corral the shopping carts after the incident.
“I love that Steve turns right back into a cop on a moments notice,” she wrote as on-screen text.
Cultural Comparison
Gosselin contrasted the reaction of the New Zealand shoppers with what she believes would happen in the United States.
“In America, they would have just let him go,” she claimed. “Oftentimes, [people] don’t pitch in and they don’t try to stop it. It’s so refreshing to see.”
Aftermath
Although Gosselin initially believed the suspect was caught, she later learned that he and an accomplice escaped in a car. A store employee told her that witnesses had recorded the license plate number to give to police.
“It’s so cool that they went after him,” she reiterated before ending the video.
Sophia A. Reynolds reported for News Of Los Angeles.
