Masked men robbed a security guard at gunpoint in broad daylight in a robbery similar to a recent heist at an Auckland girls' high school.
The armed robbery happened shortly after 1pm yesterday on Tuesday when an Armourguard security van collected the daily takings from the Arthur's Bar and Grill,in Onehunga.
Two men fled in a stolen green Toyota with a security box holding cash, abandoning the getaway car in nearby Spring St. Police believe the two men, possibly with a driver and another accomplice, ran through residential properties with the cash box to a second getaway car parked on Galway St.
Detective Sergeant Grant Tetzlaff urged anyone who saw a white, four-door saloon-type car, possibly a Mitsubishi or Mazda model, to call police.
He confirmed that police believed the same men may have committed a similar daylight robbery at Epsom Girls Grammar nearly three weeks ago.
Police had recovered the stolen black box, which held around $3000 of school money, that was later found unlocked and empty by a member of the public.
Mr Tetzlaff asked the public to be vigilant for the identical security box, made from reinforced plastic, stolen from the Armourguard van yesterday.
Bruce Lochore, of Northern Hospitality that owns Arthur's Bar, said thousands of dollars had been spent improving security in the group's 34 bars in recent months.
He noted that the robbery happened outside the bar.
"These are dangerous times for bars and we're doing everything we can to keep our staff and customers safe," said Mr Lochore.
- Contact Detective Sergeant Grant Tetzlaff on 09 524 1924
