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A rural property where a farmer fired warning shots to round up would-be burglars may have been targeted before.
Two men will appear in Hamilton District Court on Tuesday to face burglary charges after they were caught allegedly stealing petrol from a farm near Morrinsville.
The farm owner, armed with a shotgun, had confronted the pair.
He prevented them leaving by parking his vehicle across his driveway.
He then fired two warning shots to stop the men from fleeing.
He told the pair to get out of their car and lie down, which they did.
A police spokesman refused to identify the farmer.
Detective Senior Sergeant Greg Nicholls, of the Waikato CIB, said the farmer had been backed up by another person.
No decision had been made on whether the farmer would face charges over the way he had handled the situation early on Monday.
One neighbour said there had been many difficulties with criminal activity in the past.
He blamed it on a problem with the drug pure methamphetamine, or P, in a settlement close to Morrinsville.
The neighbour said he was aware that the farmer had recently had a CD unit taken from his car when it had been parked outside the farmhouse.
Another neighbour said the farm and other properties in the area had been frequently targeted by people stealing fuel.
Some people in the district no longer stored petrol in their sheds for that reason, the second neighbour said.
Federated Farmers president Charlie Pederson would not comment on whether he thought the farmer should be charged.
"It's a police matter.
"I don't support the farmer's decision and I don't not support his decision."
However, he said, he understood why the farmer had reacted in such a way.
"If you're in an urban setting a police car can be there in a few minutes. If you're in a rural setting police can take 20 minutes to an hour and a lot can happen in that time. We're pretty much on our own."
He said farmers' first call in an emergency should be to their neighbour.
"They are the closest to you and can offer support or help and they can ring the police for you."
He said he had no doubt the farmer's neighbours in Morrinsville would be rallying around him and his wife in support.
"People will be happy [if] the criminals have been caught ... that's two less criminals out on the streets.
"It's important for them to be dealt with by the justice system."
- additional reporting Alanah May Eriksen
