Two arrested in Auckland schools threat email case

New Zealand police on Thursday (March 13, 2025) arrested two people and charged one of them in the case involving two schools which had received threat emails. Police launched an investigation to trace the threat email and zeroed in on an address in Māngere East.

The officers then arrested a 20-year-old man and a woman. The man was later charged with the possession of a firearm. According to a New Zealand news portal, acting Counties Manukau District Commander Inspector Alison Brand informed that the duo taken into custody did not offer any resistance when they were confronted by the officers.

"Investigation staff have been speaking with both of these individuals throughout the day. This is still very much an active investigation and we are limited in further comment at this stage," said Brand.


“Police have now charged a 20-year-old man with a firearms offence. This relates to a firearm located at a different property," she added.

Police will produce the man before the Manukau District Court on Friday and may press more charges against him. The entire operation was carried out after a search warrant issued at the address on Thursday morning.

The threat email sent on Wednesday led to Waiuku College, a school in Auckland, into lockdown. Rutherford College is the second school targeted by the threat email.

“Any threatening message directed towards our educational institutions is taken seriously and police have worked diligently to get to the source of this email,” the police officer added.

As soon as the schools received the threat email, Waiuku College administration took the students to “safe and secure area” away from building.