![\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/PTTDD3W6G5F2PIK7T37AJZRKSA.jpg\")
\nSeveral stores, including Table Talk Whangamat\u0101 (pictured), were damaged in a series of break-ins overnight.<\/p>\n
Multiple Whangamat\u0101 shops have been damaged in a \u201cdestructive\u201d series of break-ins overnight.<\/p>\n
When Paradise Coast Barber owner Sammi Watts\u2019 phone rang in the early hours, she had no idea what had unfolded.<\/p>\n
By 2am, Watts was outside alongside seven neighbouring Port Rd business operators, all sweeping shattered glass from the pavement.<\/p>\n
She described it as a \u201cshitty thing\u201d to wake up to.<\/p>\n
\nSeveral stores, including Table Talk Whangamat\u0101 (pictured), were damaged in a series of break-ins overnight.<\/p>\n
Watts said business owners helped each other clean up.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was just this real sense of community,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone just got a broom and got stuck in.\u201d<\/p>\n
She also praised the response from local police, thanking them for their work at the scene.<\/p>\n
Whangamat\u0101 Craft Haus owner Phil Keogh was notified about the break-in at 1am and initially thought it was just a \u201cdestructive act\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a lot of glass. It seemed purely destructive \u2013 they grabbed a few tills, but there was no money in them.<\/p>\n
![\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/ESIBNL35MZE6FNZBDPCMO2OYGA.jpg\")
\nDamage at Paradise Coast Barber.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re all good.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s been a huge outpouring of support from the community. It\u2019s only glass, but it\u2019s still a shock.\u201d<\/p>\n
Products were strewn across the floor of Table Talk Whangamat\u0101, owner Julie Coombe said.<\/p>\n
Coombe said it appeared someone initially tried to break through the safety glass at the front of the shop, before smashing the front door to gain entry.<\/p>\n
She said only the till was taken but the shop was left with significant damage.<\/p>\n
Teen arrested after police chase<\/p>\n
Eastern Waikato Police area commander Inspector Mike Henwood said a man had been arrested in connection to a series of burglaries and a fleeing driver incident in Whangamat\u0101.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe alleged offender has taken several items, including cash, before police arrived at the scene.\u201d<\/p>\n
Henwood said police were tipped off by a passing witness who saw the incident unfolding and provided descriptions of an alleged offender and a vehicle.<\/p>\n
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\u201cAt around 2.30am, a vehicle has allegedly swerved to the other side of the road into the path of a police unit travelling on Tairua Rd.\u201d<\/p>\n
Henwood said police did not pursue the vehicle due to the manner of driving, however, they kept observing it.<\/p>\n
He alleged police signalled the vehicle to stop and pulled it over, but it fled, and police pursued.<\/p>\n
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The vehicle then crashed on Waih\u012b Whangamat\u0101 Rd and an 18-year-old man was arrested without incident or injuries, Henwood said.<\/p>\n
The teen was due to appear in Hamilton District Court today, charged with six counts of burglary, failing to remain stopped, and reckless driving.<\/p>\n
Police asked that anyone in the Whangamat\u0101 area at the time of this incident who may have seen any suspicious or unlawful behaviour contact police on 105, referencing 260505\/7599.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Multiple Whangamat\u0101 shops have been damaged in a \u201cdestructive\u201d series of break-ins overnight. When Paradise Coast Barber owner…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":413177,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42,43,40,38,41,39],"class_list":["post-413176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/413176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=413176"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/413176\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/413177"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=413176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=413176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=413176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}