Lambton Quay currency exchange robbed at gunpoint, man arrested

Armed police are outside the Western Union.

Wellington Police have arrested a 43-year-old man after an aggravated robbery of a currency exchange on Lambton Quay today.

The man is due to appear in Wellington District Court tomorrow on a charge of aggravated robbery and possession of an imitation firearm.

A vehicle of interest was identified by police in Lower Hutt at about 3.45pm and was stopped a short time later by armed police on State Highway 58 at the Haywards Interchange.

“Police were armed as a precaution due to the risk of firearms being present in the car,” police said.

A police spokesperson earlier said a man threatened staff in the building with a gun before escaping with an undisclosed amount of foreign currency.

“The staff members were not injured however have been shaken by the incident and are being supported. There were no customers in the store at the time.”

Police are still appealing to the public to report any sightings of a man described as being tall and thin and of Māori descent, who was wearing dark clothing, a black baseball cap, a mask and a backpack this morning between 8.30am and 10 am in the Lambton Quay and The Terrace area.

A witness earlier told the Herald she saw several police cars parked on the Quay and the area outside the Western Union currency exchange had been taped off with police tape.