Arrest made over Parliament powder scare

Police have arrested a Taranaki man in relation to a white powder scare at Prime Minister Helen Clark's Beehive offices in August.

The scare caused an uproar at Parliament on August 13 with fire engines and ambulances called after staff on the eighth floor discovered the white powder.

The white powder was sent in an envelope to the eighth floor, which houses the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Miss Clark's own offices are on the ninth floor.

It is understood the white powder was actually white flour.

Today, Wellington and Stratford police charged a 61-year-old man with criminal threats.

Wellington CIB Detective Senior Sergeant Scott Miller said that the arrest came as a result of extensive forensic examination of documents that accompanied the white powder.

The man would appear in Hawera District Court today.

- NZPA