An Auckland gas station owner says he has been robbed nearly once a week since the start of the year, amid warnings New Zealand is heading for the "kind of hell" seen in crime-hit parts of the United States.
The latest robbery of the Western Springs Caltex, during which a worker was threatened with a hammer, occurred at the weekend.
Owner Sanjai Bagia said he and his staff had become grimly familiar with being victims of armed robbery.
"It's quite intimidating you know, you're on your own, eight people come in, all actually there to actually rob you, maybe even bash you, and you've got only two seconds to actually make a decision that will probably save your life," he said.
In CCTV footage provided to RNZ, a group could be seen pulling up in front of the petrol station about 7am on Sunday.
Owner Sanjai Bagia speaks to RNZ's Finn Blackwell. Photo: RNZ / MARIKA KHABAZI
They rushed inside the store, climbing over the counter and trying to open the tobacco and cigarette cabinet.
The sole employee was threatened with a hammer as the store's fog cannons went off, filling the room with smoke.
The group fled and no one was injured.
"It's a trend that we've not seen before," Bagia said.
"Since January, of my 11 sites, we had had eight incidents, all armed hold-ups, and this one was the first one done in broad daylight, so it's a trend that is worrying."
The car used in the robbery was found abandoned a short time later.
Bagia wanted a more co-ordinated approach to addressing the issue.
"It is, in fact, an attack on our rights, and civil rights, and you name it, it's scary... and where will it stop?"
Caltex in Western Springs. Photo: RNZ / MARIKA KHABAZI
Dairy Owners Group chairman Sunny Kaushal said the weekend's incident was devastating.
He said there needed to be a change in how offenders were treated.
"We cannot afford catch and release, which has been happening from the last six or seven years," Kaushal said.
"It's time for clear red lines before we witness another tragedy."
Kaushal said the government needed to deliver on its tough on crime campaign promises.
"We had a meeting with the police minister, and also the minister of courts, and the police officials, we sent them a very clear message that we want a zero tolerance approach to retail crime and an end to the catch and release policies of the last government."
Motor Trade Association's chief executive, Lee Marshall, said that, at this rate, the country was headed for the "kind of hell" seen in the United States, where petrol station workers needed to hide behind inch-thick steel bars for protection.
"I think when people see gas stations on the side of the road what they see is Caltex, Z, BP, they see big, global corporations, but in reality, the vast majority of petrol stations across the country are owned as franchises by small business owners," he said.
"Crime hurts, it hurts them as businesses and it hurts the people that work there."
Lee Marshall said crime was overwhelmingly the biggest concern for MTA members.
Police said the investigation into the robbery was ongoing.
