Keys mistaken for knife spark police callout to Dunedin mall

An "erratic" customer paying for parking at a Dunedin mall sparked a police response after their keys were mistaken for a knife.

Police received a report of an individual with a knife in the Meridian Mall carpark at about 1.30pm yesterday.

The individual in question was ‘‘wearing a ski mask as a beanie’’.

‘‘They were unhappy with the payment process in the carpark and were acting erratically,’’ a police spokesman said.

But the ‘‘knife’’ reported appeared to have only been keys on a fob, the spokesperson said.

Officers spoke to the individual about their behaviour.

tim.scott@odt.co.nz