No prosecution after fake robbery

Press, 15 May 1985, Page 8

No prosecution after fake robbery

PA Wellington Television New Zealand would not be prosecuted after the filming of a fake bank robbery in Petone yesterday sparked a full armed call-out by the police, said Chief Inspector Lindsay Hunter, of Lower Hutt. The TVNZ film crew which staged the “robbery” without telling the police had not intended to waste police time or endanger life, said Mr Hunter. “If I thought for one moment it was a deliberate attempt to confuse the police I would have no lestitation in bringing those involved before a judge,” he said. The film script had called for a 45-second sequence where three armed men ran into the bank, told the staff to fill a bag with money, then made off. But filming had ended unexpectedly with the three actors spilling out on to the street, said the film director, Mr Mike Single. About 20 armed police rushed to the bank just after 10 a.m. after a person had telephoned to say--there

appeared to be an armed robbery taking place. The area was cordoned and the police were about to confront three persons outside the bank when a telephone call by police to the bank established what was going on. Customers and staff at the bank had been told what was going on. A B.N.Z. security mana-

ger, Mr Graeme Dallow, said the bank had made a strong protest to TVNZ for not advising the police of the mock robbery. The branch had been used for filming on previous occasions and it was clearly the responsibility of TVNZ to have made sure what was happening was not misunderstood, he said. Earlier report, page 2