Armed police have cordoned off a road north of Masterton after a string of churches were torched in the town yesterday.
Police confirmed a “vehicle of interest” was spotted around 9.15am today before it was discovered abandoned nearby at 11am on Mikimiki Rd – which has since been shut off to the public.
“Cordons are in place while police work to locate the occupant,” a police spokesperson said.
Nine police cars were seen racing through Carterton, 15km south of Masterton, about 1.40pm today.
The police operation this afternoon on Mikimiki Rd, about 10km north of Masterton, comes amid the beginning of an investigation into a man claiming to be behind the torching of a string of churches in Masterton.
Videos appeared on social media of a man who claimed to have started suspicious fires that damaged four Masterton churches and appeared to target three others in the early hours of Saturday, February 22.
“Kia ora, I set fire to the seven churches. Seven stars, seven candles,” a man says in one video clip seen by the Herald.
Police told the Herald officers were aware of the videos, and they were forming part of an investigation into the blazes.
No arrests or charges have been made yet.
An elder of one of the Masterton churches said a row of chairs had been completely burned, upholstery was left charred, and marks from smoke stretched up to the ceiling.
The four churches hit were the Anglican Church of the Epiphany, St Patrick’s Catholic Church, Masterton Baptist Church, and Equippers Church Masterton.
Emergency services discovered Masterton Baptist Church was on fire while heading to the scene of a different church fire.
Earlier, St Patrick’s Catholic Church praised the efforts of a local police officer who happened to be driving past, saw the building was “red-hot”, and managed to dampen the flames with an outside hose until firefighters arrived.
The damage to some was described as “significant”, with police investigating and standing guard at the buildings.
Up to 12 Fire and Emergency New Zealand trucks earlier rushed to fight the fires, which all started between 4.25am and 4.35am, a spokesperson said.
Masterton Baptist Church elder David Dew viewed the damage through a doorway early this morning after emergency services called him to the scene.
He was thankful and thought the damage could have been a lot worse if firefighters had not stumbled across the fire.
Dew said it appeared someone had thrown an object through the window with an accelerant to start the fire.
He told the Herald it was very disturbing four churches were targeted in one night.
“This deliberate act is very upsetting, and the fact that people or persons unknown have felt they could plan – you don’t normally have seven, we’ll call them firebombs, at hand. You have to make them.”
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Constable Vincent Kahui joined in after much encouragement from the crowd.