Man on roof in standoff with armed police in Dunedin

Armed police are in a standoff with an allegedly armed man in Dunedin.

Police rushed to Mornington’s Neidpath Rd about 3.55pm on Friday, cordoning off the road and clearing houses as a man took to the roof of home and refused to get down, a witness said.

The witness, who lives next to the property and did not want to be named, said she was on the phone with another neighbour who could see police searching properties.

“She rang me and she was crying because she heard all this commotion [and] saw the cops,” the witness said.

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“I hear the cops say to her, ‘Put your hands on your head,’ and she had guns pointed to her head.”

Police told the woman the man on the roof had a gun, so she needed to run, the witness said.

She said the home the man was on top of was known to be a halfway house.

Police with rifles could be seen controlling the cordon on Neidpath St, between Cooper St and Glen Rd.

A Stuff reporter at the scene said the man appeared to be yelling about immigration and passports. There had been some rain in Dunedin on Friday evening and the man had slipped slightly on the roof several times, the reporter said.

There were no reports of injuries and police did not believe there was a risk to members of the public, a police spokesperson said.

“Armed police are responding to an ongoing incident at an address on Niedpath Rd … cordons are in place and inquiries are ongoing,” they said.