Five people are in custody after a week-long car theft spree ended with a driver jumping into a river yesterday in Blenheim yesterday.

British funnyman Ricky Gervais has spoken out about how fraudsters stole £200,000 (NZ$460,000) from his bank account.

Stolen credit card details of tens of thousands of New Zealanders may be in the hands of a Russian or Albanian gang, an investigation suggests.

Thieves have hacked into payment machines at an Auckland carpark and stolen the credit-card details of thousands of people - possibly for years.

NZ climate scientists have criticised alleged hackers for "stealing" emails at the centre of a worldwide internet storm.

The city of Paris has been forced to pump taxpayers' money into the deflated tyres of its widely-copied, self-service, bicycle hire scheme.

Medals lawyer Chris Comeskey has mounted an all-guns-blazing attack on the judiciary after being ordered to give evidence.

A senior judge has vowed to crack down on a violent crime wave, which he says is sometimes "little more than sheer sadism".

Police believe the same brazen beanie-wearing bank robber is responsible for four hold-ups in the past few weeks.