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A man is mistakenly arrested in Glen Eden, west of Auckland, on Saturday.
Two men mistakenly arrested by police in West Auckland on Saturday were ordered to kneel on the road at gunpoint.
The couple was released minutes after their dramatic arrest in Glenmall Pl, Glen Eden, shortly after a firearms incident in a sports field parking lot just down the road.
It is understood that they received an apology from the officers at the scene following the case of mistaken identity.
A video of the incident, which Stuff has chosen not to post, it shows an officer yelling at the men to get out of his car, one at a time, walk backwards and kneel on the ground so they can be handcuffed.
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While several witnesses watched, some filming the incident with mobile phones, the men were ordered at gunpoint to lift their shirts to show that they had no concealed weapons.
During the arrests, another officer flanks around the corner pointing his rifle at the vehicle and the men.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” said a witness.
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The men were ordered to lift their shirts to show that they were not concealing weapons.
Officers then searched the silver sedan, but didn’t seem to find anything of interest.
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It is understood that the couple were detained for several minutes before the police realized that they had the wrong men.
They received an apology from the officers at the scene before they were allowed to leave.
About half an hour earlier, shortly before noon, police were alerted to an aggravated robbery during an alleged drug transaction in a parking lot in Parrs Park, just across the street from the scene of the arrests on Glenmall Pl.
A criminal pointed a gun at two people in his car and a fight broke out before the criminal and his partner fled on foot, police said.
Officers continue to search for that criminal, a police spokeswoman said.
Anyone with information about the incident can contact the police at 105 and quote file number 210116/6934, or call Crimestoppers anonymously at 0800 555111.
