Kidnap accused back in the dock

The man charged with kidnapping a Chinese family following a 45-minute hostage drama and dramatic police chase in Auckland has reappeared in court.

Leonard Hall pointed to the slogan on his T-shirt - "mo money shot" - yelled out "Mongrel Mob", swore and then blew a kiss to his girlfriend in the public gallery when he appeared in the Auckland District Court yesterday.

The 34-year-old faces three charges of kidnapping. More serious charges are expected to be laid this week.

He was remanded in custody until July 7 for a predepositions hearing.

Meanwhile, police have confirmed that while they were dealing with the hostage drama on June 5, they received a tip-off about a potentially major incident at the SkyCity Casino.

The Herald understands that the major incident was a gang-initiated robbery and that the hostage situation was a decoy to distract officers from the activity at the casino. Police spokeswoman Noreen Hegarty said officers investigating the tip-off concluded it was a rumour, but SkyCity was alerted about the situation in case.

No criminal activity of any kind eventuated that night at the casino.

A SkyCity spokeswoman, Vanessa Regan, said staff had a plan of action to deal with the "potential risks" but nothing happened.

Members of the public were not told of the threat.