A man was arrested in Taupo after escaping the district court and decided to swim through part of the lake to avoid police detection.
According to the police statement, the man was arrested after fleeing a locked courtyard.
“However, was soon arrested after swimming a small portion of the lake and attempting to evade police through a nearby property,” police said.
The man then received medical attention after sustaining minor injuries from the fence climbing.
One woman who said she witnessed this all happened and says she saw two men sprint away from the paddy wagon and said it was a “good 10 to 15 seconds” before they were pursued.
A police spokesperson later confirmed there was only one escapee.
The woman said the escapes were getting “out of hand” and said there needed to be more police presence in the area.
“I think people should be more aware. Who knows what they’re in there for? And there’s a lot of houses around the area.”
“A couple of weeks ago one man escaped and was on the run for 48 hours.”
The woman was referring to the escape of Samir Derek Belhajjam who evaded his police escort and was on the run then turned himself in after 48 hours.
Photo Credit: Waikato Times
