Police won't rule out further charges for vandalism on Auckland train

One of a group of taggers who vandalised two carriages at the Puhunui train station near Papatoetoe on Sunday morning. Photo / Supplied

Police have charged three men involved in tagging an Auckland building and are not ruling out whether they could be linked to vandalism at a South Auckland train station earlier in the day.

A member of the public spotted three men tagging a VTNZ building on New North Rd about 4.30pm yesterday and then took photos of five men leaving in a vehicle.

The good civilian then called police who launched the Police Eagle Helicopter which tracked down the men and they were pulled over by a police car in Newmarket.

A Police spokesperson confirmed a 24-year-old man from Christchurch, and a 22-year-old and 25-year-old from Rotorua have been charged with wilful damage and will appear in Auckland District Court.

Police were now looking at whether the tagging on the VTNZ building and an earlier attack on train carriages were linked and could not rule out the possibility of further charges.

Earlier in the day a train was delayed for about 15 minutes after taggers wearing black masks vandalised trains at Puhinui Station near Papatoetoe.

Taggers with black masks sprayed paint on two of the three carriages on the train bound for Britomart.

They were wearing hoodies and some wore GoPro cameras on their heads to film the tagging.

"This type of behaviour is incredibly frustrating, not only for police and Auckland Council but also for members of our community whose rates ultimately have to pay for the graffiti to be cleaned up," the spokesperson said.

Police urged members of the public to contact police or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 if they witnessed people tagging.

Taggers delay Auckland train for 15-minute illegal paint job