Police Eagle helicopter catches would-be thief in the act in Gulf Harbour

Snapped! A would-be burglar is caught in the act with the help of Police's Eagle helicopter unit. Image / NZ Police

A would-be thief had nowhere to run when confronted by police officers with the help of the Police's Eagle helicopter - and an equally eagle-eyed neighbour.

Footage from the Eagle helicopter shows a man walking down a street in the Gulf Harbour area, north of Auckland, looking into parked vehicles and checking to see if they are open.

He gets lucky at one point - opening a car parked in a driveway.

Officers inside the Eagle can be heard telling their colleagues on the ground what they can see and what the male can be seen doing.

"He's at the driver's door and looking inside it," Eagle staff can be heard saying.

But his luck soon runs out, as officers on the ground yell out - causing him to jump out of the vehicle.

The footage was shared on the North Shore, Rodney & West Auckland Police Facebook page yesterday, saying officers were called to the scene in the early hours of the morning after a member of the public reported suspicious activity in their neighbourhood.

"Eagle was soon in the area and observed a male allegedly trying to open doors of parked vehicles on the street," the post read.

"Police put a stop to this after Eagle directed in ground units to his location."

The time stamp on the video shows the incident happened at 3am.

A 24-year-old man has since been charged and is before the Waitākere District Court, police said.

Snapped! A would-be burglar is caught in the act with the help of Police's Eagle helicopter unit. Image / NZ Police