Revealed: 2019's first arrest was at one minute past midnight

  • 02/01/2019
Revealed: 2019's first arrest was at one minute past midnight
Photo credit: Getty

It took just one minute for New Zealand's first arrest of 2019 - a 19-year-old man after allegedly deliberately knocking off a police officer's hat.

He allegedly tried to run off with hat after the incident near The Mall in Queenstown, but police said he didn't get very far.

"It's one of those things you just put down to too much alcohol. There's no other reason for doing something like that at midnight on New Year's Eve," Senior Sergeant Paula Enoka told the Otago Daily Times.

Queenstown Police made five arrests on New Year's Eve and in the early part of the next day, with alcohol playing a part in most of them.

Three were for assault and the other two for disorderly behaviour, police said in a statement.

Snr Sgt Enoka said five arrests were "not too bad", with around 100,000 extra people in the region and an estimated 15,000 downtown celebrating on the night.

"But overall, the levels of intoxication were still too high for our liking and there were people trying to get alcohol into the zone past the checkpoints," she told the ODT.

Newshub.