A total of 22 arrests were made and two Bay of Islands licensed premises were busted selling alcohol to minors in a transtasman police operation over the weekend.
Operation Unite resulted in more than 1000 people being arrested and hundreds more charged with a variety of offences across New Zealand and Australia, in a crackdown on alcohol-related crime. There were 300 arrests in New Zealand.
The 22 arrests in Northland were made across the region by 30 officers dedicated to the operation, which ran from 6pm to 6am on Friday and Saturday nights.
All were related to alcohol and charges included assault, breach of the liquor ban, disorder and driving with excess breath alcohol. One person was also arrested for failing to stop, dangerous driving, driving while forbidden and being in possession of utensils for drugs.
Northland road policing manager Inspector Murray Hodson said the figures were typical for a weekend in Northland and highlighted the huge resources and time police put in to dealing with alcohol-related crime. Nationally, it uses up 20 per cent of police resources.