Arrest after one-arm bandit robbery

Police have arrested a 32-year-old man following a robbery at a bar north of Auckland.

Two masked men - one who had only one arm - threw staff to the ground after aiming the rifle at them at Creoles Bar and Brasserie in the beachfront town of Orewa on Monday morning.

They fled in a purple Holden Commodore with a large but undisclosed amount of cash.

A 32-year-old sickness beneficiary was arrested after police carried out a search at a property in Manukau today.

He will appear in the North Shore District Court tomorrow charged with aggravated robbery and possession of methamphetamine.

Police say information received from the public had been vital to the ongoing investigation. A second offender was still being sought.

- NZPA