Woman arrested after hoax call to police

A woman has been arrested for wasting police time after rescue teams spent hours searching for a 111 caller who said she'd been attacked with a sword.

The woman was eventually found uninjured in her bed after a three hour search, Inspector Andrew Brill said.

He said the caller had tied up West Auckland police resources and resulted in delays responding to genuine emergency calls.

The woman called about 11.30pm and said she had been assaulted by a man who had slashed her with a sword and left her bleeding.

After her cell phone cut out, police called her back and were told she was no longer able to stand and was lying in a car park bleeding badly

Mr Brill said contact was lost and regained several times, yet each time the woman indicated her condition was deteriorating.

Police patrols, a police dog, and a specialist search and rescue team scoured the New Lynn area for the woman, after checks confirmed the phone was transmitting from that area.

"Enquiries to establish the woman's identity and associates resulted in her being found in bed and uninjured at an Avondale address at about 3am," Mr Brill said.

The 26-year-old woman will appear in Waitakere District Court today charged with wasting police time and assaulting a police officer.

- NZPA