Arrests connected to crime spree

A 17-year-old South Canterbury youth has appeared in court in connection with an alleged crime spree stretching from Kaikoura to Waimate, with two other 17-year-olds to appear on Friday.

Timaru Detective Senior Sergeant Richard Quested said three teenagers were arrested in Waimate on Saturday night and charged with the theft of thousands of dollars worth of cigarettes, two cars, and petrol, as well as arson.

Quested said about $8000 worth of cigarettes was stolen from a Night n’ Day dairy in Kaikoura on March 18.

A Challenge petrol station in Culver- den was later robbed and the car used to flee the scene was found burnt out just outside the North Canterbury town.

A nearby rural property was allegedly burgled, from which three suspects are believed to have found the keys to a car, that was then unlawfully taken from the address.

Quested said it was driven to the Caltex station on Dobson St in Ashburton, where petrol was stolen.

The vehicle was later set alight and left to burn in a riverbed near Waimate.

Quested said a sharp-eyed Waimate resident spotted three youths acting suspiciously on Saturday night.

He said the resident called the police and then ‘‘kept an eye’’ on them until police arrived.

The resident had done a ‘‘tremendous job’’ in helping police.

‘‘It’s good to see somebody, a person in the community, taking some positive action when they see something, to call the police, and we get a good result out of it.’’

A 17-year-old appeared in Timaru District Court on Monday morning, where he was remanded in custody to be assessed for possible drug and alcohol treatment.

He will reappear on Tuesday morning to make an application for bail.

Two other youths were remanded on bail to appear in court in Timaru on Friday.