NEW ZEALAND. Wellington: New Zealand police have arrested a woman for her alleged involvement in the attack on PM Jacinda Ardern’s electorate office in Auckland.
At the time of the attack on Thursday morning, PM Ardern was not in the office. She is on her way to visit Antarctica, as reported by local media.
The 57-year-old woman was indeed arrested, a police spokesperson said, adding that she was “currently aiding police with our inquiries into the case.”
Police reported that a huge weapon that resembled a samurai sword was discovered nearby and that the PM’s office’s front door had been broken.
A neighbour was quoted by the local media as saying that the perpetrator used an object to smash the front doors before throwing something through the hole in the door, which soon after caused smoke to flow out of the building.
Police stated that they are “conducting inquiries into a report of deliberate damage at an address on Great North Road.”
“The incident was reported at about 8.20 am, where an object was thrown through a window,” reads a police statement.
“A scene examination will be conducted and inquiries remain ongoing,” the statement continued.
No injuries have been confirmed, the local media reported. At the time, the office was vacant and its occupant was 5,000 kilometres away on a freezing continent.
After a flight on Tuesday was diverted owing to bad weather at McMurdo Sound, Ardern and her fiancé, Clarke Gayford, made it to Scott Base on Wednesday on their second attempt.
The prime minister is expected to return to New Zealand late on Friday after visiting the research station.
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