Man charged over robberies

Police have charged a man over a spate of armed robberies at service stations and a dairy in Auckland.

Detectives had been questioning the 36-year-old about the four aggravated robberies around the city on Wednesday before charging him with those and three others and with the arson of a car.

The man will appear in Auckland District Court today where he will also face charges of wilful damage and trespass.

Wednesday's robberies took place in four suburbs in the space of about 45 minutes starting at 6.30am.

The man was arrested initially yesterday on a warrant for failing to appear in Auckland District Court on Wednesday on existing wilful damage and trespass charges.