Gang members hindered emergency staff who were searching for a missing person following a house fire in Whangarei overnight.
Police and fire crews were called to the William Jones Drive property in Otangerei about 1.20am.
The house and a car were "well involved" when fire crews arrived, northern fire communications shift manager Paul Radden said.
There were reports of a person inside the home, but an initial search was unsuccessful.
Mr Radden said a further search in daylight also found no sign of a person, so it was believed there was nobody home.
