As stated by Waikato West Investigations Manager Detective Senior Sergeant Ross Patterson:
A 111 call was made shortly after 12.05pm yesterday, when a man and woman entered a bank on Rora Street, Te Kuiti and demanded cash. Both are believed to have been armed, but thankfully nobody was injured.
They were both dressed in black and fled on a black, farm-style motorbike as seen in the photograph accompanying this release.
The Police Eagle helicopter responded and assisted with area searches for the pair. While they remain outstanding, Police are following strong leads.
Te Kuiti’s a fantastic, close-knit community that doesn’t tolerate things like this. We know that some people may have seen the pair on the motorbike either before or after the robbery and we want them to reach out to Police.
In response to yesterday’s events, the community has organised a meeting today and Police will be attending.
Aggravated robbery is a horrible crime that inflicts fear and trauma on innocent people and we understand that a lot of people will be concerned. Police are working incredibly hard to locate these offenders and get them off our streets.
We ask anyone with information that may assist us to contact us. Even if you think it’s insignificant, it could be the piece of the puzzle that allows us to close the net on these offenders.
You can contact us on 105, or online at 105.police.govt.nz, quoting file number 230516/7295
Information can also be provided anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, or https://www.crimestoppers-nz.org/.
