Escaped youth tracked by Eagle helicopter, found hiding in New Brighton
The young person who escaped from a youth justice facility in Rolleston has been located...
Christchurch police will fight crime without the support of the Eagle helicopter.
A police spokeswoman told Chris Lynch the Commissioner recently met with a number of staff informally, and indicated that any consideration of extending air support would need to be made in context with existing priorities.
She said police are in the process of developing a new Air Support strategy, which will take a broader view of air support across the country, before police commit to investment in specific locations.
“As such, there is no immediate plan to establish an Air Support unit in Canterbury.”
“We will be discussing the outcomes of the evaluation of this pilot with our partners to understand their perspectives as part of next steps.”
Police trialled the crime-fighting flying tool between February 17 and March 20, catching nine gang members with its help.
At the end of week four, Eagle attended more than 300 calls and helped find or arrest more than 200 people.
