Alleged harassment linked to stolen hives

Police have been investigating claims a harassment campaign is being waged in a remote rural community, sparked by reports of 16 beehives being stolen.

Last week, police executed a search warrant at a property in Puniwhakau, a remote part of central Taranaki about 40km east and inland from Stratford.

The focus of the search was to find firearms linked to reports of property damage being committed at a farm in the area, including a 20,000 litre water tank being shot at.

Constable Cameron Hunt, of Stratford, said members of the Armed Offenders Squad were initially involved to clear the property.

Then about 10 officers completed an extensive search of the grounds and surrounding area, which covered about 300 hectares.

The ongoing police investigation, dubbed Operation Aqualung, has been in progress since October last year.

It focussed on reports that a couple living in the area had been the target of ongoing harassment, including the water tank being sprayed with gunfire and left full of holes and a paddock on their farm set alight.

The investigation into the harassment claims stemmed from the theft of 16 beehives from the same couple’s farm last year.

It is alleged the beehives were stolen in an overnight raid of the property on March 12, 2017.

Two days later, police searched a nearby farm and found the stolen beehives.

Two men, aged 45 and 24 respectively, were subsequently charged with the theft and have pleaded not guilty.

The 45-year-old also faces an additional charge of criminal harassment as a result of the ongoing inquiry and had also entered a not guilty plea to this offence.

Both men are due to appear in the New Plymouth District Court on April 24.

Hunt said no firearms were found in last week’s search and it was unlikely that any further charges would be laid at this stage.