Police are defending their decision to have armed officers evacuate residents on Friday night while hunting a wanted man who remains on the run.
Photo: RNZ/Adriana Weber
Smoke bombs and tear gas were used in the operation to flush a wanted man, Shawn Harding, who police believed was in a house on Bristol Street in Napier.
They said at the time that it was a planned operation to catch a dangerous fugitive, but Harding was not in the house and remains on the run.
Acting Hawke's Bay area commander Andy Sloan said police took necessary steps to clear the house and confirm whether Shawn Harding was there.
He would not comment on what led police to suspect he was there, or its tactics during the callout.
