A man is due to appear in court after he was caught attempting to steal fuel from vehicles in Christchurch.
Police received a call from a member of the public about 4am on Wednesday who reported they had seen a person attempting to siphon petrol from their vehicle in Sockburn.
"Officers have immediately attended and made enquiries in the area, before stopping a vehicle," police said in a statement.
"A search of the vehicle saw it contained five 60 litre containers, a battery-operated siphoning pump, and a small amount of methamphetamine."
The 31-year-old man was set to appear in the Christchurch District Court on Wednesday, charged with unlawfully interfering with a motor vehicle, possessing goods capable of facilitating dishonesty offending, and possession of methamphetamine.
Meanwhile in Hamilton, a person called police as they were watching a live camera of a man stealing diesel from their worksite in Peacocke about 4.20am.
"The man drove off in a hatchback south of the city, and was intercepted by Police around 4:35am and arrested.
"Located in his vehicle were three containers of diesel, as well as several tools, drugs, and knives.
"The 35-year-old man was expected in Hamilton District Court today – charges were yet to be confirmed."
Assistant Commissioner Tusha Penny said police are continuing to monitor fuel thefts, "and we have started to see an increase in diesel thefts".
"These incidents are an example of where we are reliant on sharp-eyed members of the public to call police immediately when they see any suspicious activity.
"We want to thank the community for working with us to ensure these offenders were arrested and will be held to account,” she says.
