Three arrested after break-ins

BROKEN GLASS: Ryan Seator, of GAS Eketahuna, was the victim of a "smash and grab" break-in yesterday. PHOTO/FILE

Two Masterton men and a teenager have been arrested after allegedly breaking into two petrol stations in one night.

Masterton police arrested a 19-year-old, 18-year-old and 16-year-old as they drove a white vehicle into Masterton about 2.20am yesterday.

Senior Sergeant Gordon Crawley said the trio were stopped by Masterton night duty officers after information was received from Palmerston North police about break-ins at Ashhurst and Eketahuna, which had occurred earlier the same night.

It was believed little, if anything, had been taken during either break-in.

The owner of GAS Eketahuna, Ryan Seator, confirmed the station was one of the two hit in a "smash and grab" yesterday morning.

He arrived at the petrol station after the alarm triggered a call to his phone about 1.50am and found a "hell of a mess" with broken glass strewn everywhere.

"It's not very nice when someone invades your privacy but it's part of being in business. There's always the degenerates out there who want to make our life more miserable.

"It's been a long morning."

He said little and nothing of value had been taken.

Although Mr Seator had yet to view the CCTV footage, he believed the front door had been smashed with something similar to a hammer.

The door would need to be fixed and the glass replaced which would not be covered by his insurance.

"You end up working for another week to pay for it," Mr Seator said.

All three have been charged with two counts of burglary each and were due to appear in Masterton District Court yesterday.