In the 25 years of being a community patrol officer in Christchurch, one woman says she's never seen such "a spike" in youth crime.
Hornby community patrol officer Ali Loffhagen volunteers her days and evenings patrolling her community to ensure residents are safe "looking out for any problems and reporting it to the police".
Loffhagen told AM she's seen all sorts of crimes, especially in recent months.
"Whether it be ram raids, stolen vehicles, stolen plates put on vehicles. There's a whole range of things that have been happening and it's just unbelievable to be honest."
And it's not just the crimes taking place that are concerning, teens are then posting their actions to the social media platform TikTok.
Loffhange believes the young offenders get a buzz or an adrenaline rush, all while knowing "they can't be touched" because of their age.
New Zealand Association of counsellors Sarah Maindonald said the issues facing Aotearoa's vulnerable youth have "been brewing for a long time".
"We've been talking about youth mental health crisis but this is the face of it, when kids give up hope [these] are what behaviours come through."
It comes after a 14-year-old boy faces 81 charges after serious incidents in Christchurch including assault and aggravated robbery over the last week.
Maindonald told AM the issues are "quite complex".
She said a 14-year-old facing 81 charges doesn't just happen overnight. Maindonald believes these teens' issues could be identified earlier in primary or intermediate school.
"Children need navigators in schools, a lot of the kids don't cope with school. If they fall out of school that's a huge protective factor, there's a lot of research around truancy and youth crime."
Watch the full interview above.
