Winz ram-raid
A man will appear in court after allegedly crashing into a WINZ office and starting a fire.
A 60-YEAR-OLD man who allegedly ram-raided a van through the doors of Blenheim’s Work and Income office before dousing the building with fuel will appear in court on arson and burglary charges today.
He was taken from custody in Blenheim police station to the mental-health unit in Nelson yesterday afternoon.
Blenheim Sergeant Jason Munro said police were called to the Alfred St building at 5am yesterday.
Officers found the van had crashed through the front door and security door of the building. It was parked in the reception area.
The driver, who was the only person in the vehicle, had spread accelerant around the office and lit it, starting a fire.
When police arrived, the man was in the building. He was arrested at the scene and was treated for smoke inhalation.
Munro said the man was calm and co-operative when arrested and had not been drinking. He was not known to police. Munro said the man was not involved in previous threats against Work and Income staff.
‘‘We thought Work and Income had ramped up security quite significantly. This was a deliberate act to go through the front doors,’’ Munro said.
Police were increasing patrols in the area over the summer after the incident.
There was no indication he tried to take anything from the office.
The fire has caused severe scorch damage to the reception desk. A trail of fuel stains were on the carpet and shards of glass scattered around the office.
The van would have had to mount the paved pedestrian walkway beside the Taylor River before making a sharp turn to line up with the entrance doors.
‘‘He would have had to make an 11-point turn,’’ Munro said.
Blenheim chief fire officer Rob Dalton said the sprinkler system extinguished the fire and saved the building.
The grey Mazda Bongo van covered in dirt was pushed out of the office by police officers and Dalton.
The arrested man looked to have been living in the van or had been camping. The rear of the vehicle had a gas canister, sleeping bag, pillow and a chilly bin.
Work and Income deputy chief executive Debbie Power said the man arrested was not a client. The building had been secured and the fire damage was being assessed and was not expected to open until the new year, she said.
Police have been alerted to a number of threats towards the Work and Income offices after the shooting deaths of two Ashburton staff members on September 1.