A man has been arrested and charged after a large Māori carving welcoming visitors into Kaitaia was vandalised last Friday.
The head of one pillar of Kaitaia's only carved Pouwhenua was cut off, and an attempt was made to saw through another piece.
A 61-year-old local man was arrested today after police were tipped off following the release of CCTV footage yesterday.
He will appear in the Kaitaia District Court tomorrow charged with intentional damage.
"Orongo represents unity and peace, and is this community's taonga, and we are thankful to have apprehended the person responsible for desecrating it," police said.
Benjai Gregory, who helped carve it, said yesterday that he was angry distraught over the damage.
"I was down in Auckland at the time, and I was really angry, I was so upset, in the end I felt hurt and broken," he said.
The pou was part of a $7 million project to beautify Kaitaia.
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