Teens kidnapped at gunpoint

Three teenagers who were held at gunpoint in Merivale on Sunday have been left shaken by the incident, with one fearing to leave his house.

Eighteen-year-old Tyson Western and two of his friends had arrived to pick up another friend in Merivale when a man with a gun approached them and demanded cigarettes.


Tyson Western is still shaken by Sunday's ordeal. Photo: Supplied.

Speaking to SunLive this morning, Tyson says their minds went blank when the man, described as being in his 30s and wearing a Mongrel Mob patch, approached them at about 10pm on Sunday.

Shelley Western says her son was being held at gunpoint at one end of the town while her husband was helping police catch thieves in Bethlehem.

'Chris, Michael and I went to pick a mate up from Oxford Street in Merivale,” explains Tyson. 'We parked up and I got out to check if our friend was ready and Michael jumped in the driver's seat.”

They encountered the man after Tyson hopped back into the passenger's side of the car.

'He was holding a big black rifle with a scope on it and pointed it at the boys while demanding cigarettes,” adds Tyson.

'We got Chris to move over and he (the armed man) jumped in. He was pointing the gun at Michael's head while Michael was driving.”

The boys drove the accused to Hampton Terrace.

'We got to his house and he stayed in the car for ages,” he adds. 'He wouldn't get out and was just saying all these crazy things. He kept repeating the word underlay.”

Tyson says the man offered them money to put a smoke in their mouths to see if he could shoot it out and also offered them money to hold a bottle while he tried to shoot it.

'We were pretty scared,” says Tyson. 'When he first came to the car we all sort of wentm blank and just did what he said.” The man eventually got out of the car and proceeded to fire four or five shots into the air, further scaring the boys in the car.

The boys took their opportunity to flee after the man went inside his house to get something.

Tyson says they drove to Courtney Road and noticed they were being followed by a white Holden.

'We just kept running and eventually ended up at Sulphur Point,” he says. 'We went there because we thought it was far enough away from where the man was.”

Still spooked by what had happened, Tyson, Chris and Michael were paranoid about being followed, so they made their way to Tyson's home in Bethlehem where they called police.

They went to the Tauranga Police Station on Monmouth Street and were interviewed by police.

The Armed Offenders' Squad was dispatched to search for the armed man, who was later taken into custody.

He has been arrested and is due to appear in Tauranga District Court on March 10.

Western Bay of Plenty tactical response manager Inspector Karl Wright-St Clair confirmed there had been an incident where teenagers had been allegedly held at gunpoint and kidnapped.

He says armed police searched a Merivale address at about 8am on Monday and took one man into custody. What charges the accused faces is still unknown.

Tyson wants his story to be a warning for all people to be careful about where they stop at night and to always be vigilant.

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3 comments

Time that the Authorities

Posted on 03-03-2015 14:02 | By How about this view!

started to have a clean-out of gang members and affiliates in and around our city. Gang "Colours" are becoming more and more evident in Willow Street and in and around Bayfair at certain times and it is more noticeable that these wasters are no longer worried about advertising their presence (Thee's no-one willing to move them on any more). There is blatant drug and alcohol use evident at the Willow street bus stops at all times of the day, particularly when the school kids arrive en-masse and the presence of the vagrants makes for a great welcome to our city for cruise-ship passengers stepping off the shuttles or town buses.


Scary

Posted on 03-03-2015 14:23 | By maildrop

Send the accused to Iraq/Syria/IS in full mob get up with his patch, rifle and crazy underlay talk. See how tough he is then.


scary

Posted on 04-03-2015 07:47 | By kinacat

I have family that live along Hampton and Henderson. Scary to think they just had to be in the wrong place,wrong time and who knows what the outcome could of been. Shudder to think sends chills up my spine. I love merivale, but man sometimes I gotta wonder is it safe enough to live there for my loved ones its a worry alright.


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