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By 1news NEW ZEALAND
Five young people have evacuated the roof of an Auckland youth court facility overnight.
In Wiri, some young people forced themselves out of an apartment at the Korowai-Manaaki Youth Justice Residency on Saturday.
Oranga Tamariki reports that six people initially occupied the roof.
Tusha Peny, deputy chief executive of the agency, described it as an “extremely dangerous and challenging situation.”
We are relieved to hear that all is well, but we’re also disappointed at the length of time it took to resolve this situation. She said that the young people had several chances to decide to do what was right and come down.
These young people have committed serious crimes and are now at Korowai Manaaki.
They will be held criminally liable for any damage caused on the weekend.
We are still assessing the damage, but we do know that they damaged the security cameras, the ceiling cavity, and parts of the roofing.
“Three of the five youths who were on the roof last night came down around 6.30, and the other two just after 10:30.”
Mike Bush, the deputy chief executive of Oranga Tamariki, stated yesterday that youths were fed and warm before being taken from the roof.
He said in a press release that “We have to remember these are youths and their safety must be our number one priority.”
We are also in touch with the whanau to ensure they have enough food, water and warmth.
Bush said there was no threat to public safety.
Auckland’s “top police negotiators” were part of a “large, experienced team of police officers”.
Our team is large, experienced and includes top negotiators from Auckland. The police are communicating with young people using a cell phone provided by them and a radio, which was acquired by the youth when the incident started.
