A 37-year-old man has been arrested following a manhunt in the Coromandel.
Waikato police spent the day in rugged terrain seeking a potentially armed gang member, which ended successfully. Police say the arrest was due to a combination of good police work and public assistance.
Senior Sergeant Juliet Burgess said officers assisted by the armed offenders squad went to a Hikuai property searching for the man.
"Information had been received in relation to the man being in possession of a firearm; however, the man had fled shortly before police arrived and officers began searching the greater Coromandel for him and his black Ford Falcon car.
"We believe the man may have crashed his vehicle, owing to a number of calls received from members of the public who described a person matching the fugitive's description being seen on State Highway 25 acting suspiciously who had a large cut to his head."
The man was seen by a member of the public emerging injured from a creek bed wearing a blue singlet and shorts with a backpack over his shoulder.
He then gave the man a ride back to Hikuai shortly before midday, Snr Sgt Burgess said.
"Later in the afternoon police identified where they thought the man might be and again established a number of cordons."
He was located after another car leaving the area was stopped by armed police and he was taken into custody.
An aerial search is currently underway by the Auckland-based Police Eagle helicopter to try and locate the man's black Ford Falcon that police suspect was crashed earlier in the day.
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