Masked looters raided the shelves of a Christchurch store on Friday as the fog cannon went off and a member of the public filmed them in the act.
Police were notified about the break-in at the Bush Inn store, Riccarton, at 6.30am.
A woman waiting near the MetroMart for her cafe shift to start told the New Zealand Herald she noticed a commotion coming from the store.
The masked figures had broken into the MetroMart and she watched from her car as they raided the shelves.
A police spokesperson told the Herald the offenders may have smashed the glass shopfront to get in.
"The store’s fog cannon activated and it’s unclear if the offender/s actually managed to take anything.”
The witness told the Herald the fog cannons had been triggered by the time she arrived.
"I am literally witnessing a ram-raid right now ... good morning!" she said in the video published by the Herald.
The group could be seen carrying items to their getaway car.
