Two males and three females aged between 18 and 32 years have been charged with the aggravated robbery of the Lyttelton Street dairy on Saturday evening, 16 July this year.
DS Corrie Parnell of the Southern Area Police says they are jointly charged and will appear tomorrow. Inquiries are continuing.
There have been twelve attempted robberies and/or robberies of dairies in Christchurch this year but police do not believe they are dealing with a `serial' offender.
"Since the beginning of May we have arrested a total of eleven persons for five robberies so far," says Detective Senior Sergeant Grant Wormald.
"The evidence to date indicates that these are `one off' robberies," he says. "To date there is no is no obvious evidence to suggest that the offenders caught so far are responsible for the outstanding robberies."
Dairy owners need to ensure that:
• surveillance equipment is up to date, in working condition, and turned on with tape.
• once a robbery has occurred and the offender has left, it is important the owner closes and locks the door, preventing any other customers coming in, to prevent the loss of any evidence.
• staff make a mental note of the description of the offender and any distinguishing features, such as clothes, hair etc.
• victims comply with demands as it not worth risking the safety of you or your staff.
• consider clearing posters off windows to allow the public to see anything happening.