Luck runs out for barefoot fugitive

Luck ran out yesterday for a fugitive who had spent three weeks on the run.

Casey Bowler-Moncur escaped from Motueka police station in Nelson on July 22. He was barefoot and allegedly stole a vehicle from the town.

Bowler-Moncur, 44, was caught in a stream behind the former Roslyn Woollen Mills building in Kaikorai Valley Rd, Dunedin, at 5.40pm, after being spotted by an off-duty officer.

The Otago Daily Times reported he had been on the run since July 21, when he failed to appear in Dunedin District Court on burglary charges, and was wanted in relation to dozens of commercial burglaries across the South Island in the past two months.

Last night police charged him with the robbery of the Westpac Gardens branch bank in North Road, Dunedin, on July 14.

Senior Sergeant Craig Brown said Bowler-Moncur was apprehended by officers, including a police dog team, in what he called "a great team effort".

On July 22, Bowler-Moncur escaped from the Motueka police station after being arrested in relation to several burglaries.

Mr Brown said Bowler-Moncur had been seen by a police doctor for a dog bite and for cuts and grazes and would appear in the Dunedin District Court today.

- NZPA