A joint police and CYF operation helped prevent any repeat of the previous weekend's youth disorder in Kaikohe.
A joint police and CYF operation helped prevent any repeat of the previous weekend's youth disorder in Kaikohe.
Kaikohe residents enjoyed a peaceful weekend with extra police and Child Youth and Family (CYF) staff on duty to prevent a repeat of the previous week's chaos.
Tony Taylor, the founder of the Kaikohe Community Patrol, said the feedback he had received was positive, with people telling him they feltsafe walking down the town's main street.
Acting Senior Sergeant Dylan Robinson of Kaikohe police said the joint operation brought together police and CYF staff from across the Mid North plus extra officers from Whangarei.
Operation Yaro aimed to engage with youth and provide reassurance to the community through increased police patrols and getting out and talking to business owners and the public.
"The engagement with youth was awesome. They responded really positively," he said.
The operation targeted Moerewa and Kawakawa as well as Kaikohe.
It had yet to be decided whether the operation would be repeated this coming weekend or at a later date.
The previous weekend's trouble thrust Kaikohe under a national spotlight and prompted Police Minister Paul Bennett to commit to making Northland a "priority area" when police numbers are boosted by a promised 880 new frontline officers.
It started on the evening of March 17 when half a dozen youths entered The Shed liquor store on Marino Court and ran out with 10 boxes of beer.
Later that night, about 1am, a group of about 20 youths, some as young as 11, tried to smash their way into the Mobil service station on lower Broadway. CCTV footage shows them repeatedly kicking the doors and throwing rocks at the glass.
A few days later four youths bailed for the Mobil incident were arrested again when a stolen car crashed into stock on a back road near Ohaeawai. The farmer had to put down three injured cows.
