Man arrested over attempted bank robbery in South Auckland

The man was spotted entering the ANZ bank on Great South Road in Manurewa. Photo / Getty Images

A man has been arrested in South Auckland over an attempted bank robbery this afternoon.

A police spokeswoman says he was spotted entering the ANZ bank on Great South Road in Manurewa where he made demands for cash from the branch staff.

She says a member of the public flagged down a police car that was passing by.

The two police officers managed to apprehend and arrest the man.

Just last week a number of bank robberies in South Auckland led police to question if a serial burglar was responsible.

However at this stage the police spokeswoman says it's not clear if the man arrested today was the same man responsible for the prior robberies.

In three separate incidents from August 31st to September 8 an unarmed man entered a bank demanding cash from staff.

On Tuesday September 7, KiwiBank in Otara was robbed, on September 8, it was the BNZ in Manukau and on Monday August 31st it was ASB's Botany Junction branch.

South Auckland robbery timeline

Today - ANZ Bank Manurewa
September 8 - BNZ Manukau
September 7 - KiwiBank Otara
August 31st - ASB Botany Junction