Man calls police on alleged Cannabis thief, both get arrested
Hastings Man Reports Cannabis Theft, Ends Up Charged Alongside Thief.
A Hastings man who discovered a person allegedly stealing a cannabis plant from his property called police, who captured the thief and charged both of them.
Police received a 111 call at 2.15am on Tuesday from an address in Mahora after man noticed a balaclava-wearing man with a butcher's knife stealing plants from the property.
Upon arrival at the scene, officers located the alleged thief as he walked away from a green waste bin into which he had dumped the plant.
In a statement, police said that the stolen plant turned out to be a "massive cannabis plant, the size of a big Christmas tree".
The alleged offender was transported to the police station and officers spoke to the man who made the phone call.
While speaking to him, police found enough to trigger a search warrant.
Several other cannabis plants were located on his property, with police confiscating the remaining buds, seeds and plants.
A 35-year-old man was charged with aggravated burglary, while the 33-year-old informant was arrested for cultivating cannabis and possessing cannabis utensils.
Both will appear in Hastings District Court later this month.
