Crimeline has changed. The report is now based on a police media briefing, and is written by the Wānaka App.

Family harm continues to be reported in the Upper Clutha, and a few cases were dealt with in the past week, Wānaka Police senior sergeant Chris Brooks says.

This included a middle-aged man from Queensbury who was arrested on multiple charges after an Armed Operation Squad (AOS) callout. 

Road policing has become a major focus for Wānaka Police, Chris said.

A combination of a busy summer season, the approach of Chinese New Year, and the general resurgence of tourism to New Zealand generally mean that road policing now takes up a lot of police time.

Recently, police have been focused on a few key tourist routes including the Cardrona Valley and the Crown Range.

Chris noted that it’s hard to get the right messaging about road rules across to one-time visitors - and emphasised the role locals can play in contributing to a safe driving experience for all. 

“What’s important is the people who go through every day to model good behaviour for the other good drivers to copy,” he said.

“If you drive through every day and you’re cutting all the corners and you have a tourist following you, they're going to think it’s okay.”

The upcoming Burt Munro motorbiking rally has added a significant number of motorbikes to the road, plus other weekend visitors contributed to the particularly heavy traffic over the last week, Chris said. 

Wānaka Police has also been doing a “fair bit of work” in the Lindis of late, Chris said.

“A lot of people have been reporting drivers on the wrong side of the road or passing on blind corners,” he said.

Wānaka Police also provides staff to monitor the Haast area and other tourist routes where there are a lot of visiting drivers but relatively few local police. 

A crash took place on Domain Road in Lake Hāwea last week when a driver left the sealed section of road and lost control on the gravel.

The car flipped but the driver had only minor injuries, Chris said.

Over the last week Chris said the police had been dealing with some “mental health” cases, another thing he said takes up a lot of police time.

Wānaka Police also issued a reminder that there is a lot of lost property at the police station and more dropped off every day.

If the police station is closed, anyone with items to drop off can put them in the dropbox located outside the main doors, which is emptied daily.

Call 111 when you need an emergency response from police, fire or ambulance.

Call 105 to report things that don’t need urgent police assistance.

Call *555 to report road incidents that are urgent but not life-threatening.

To make an anonymous crime report contact Crime Stoppers.

PHOTO: Wānaka App