Locals witnessed a series of events unfold Thursday afternoon, leading to the arrest of a 26-year-old man after an alleged crime spree on the North Shore.

It began in Browns Bay, where a car was taken from a supermarket car park around 1:30 pm.

Acting Inspector CJ Miles, of Waitematā East Police, confirmed that the vehicle’s owner had approached the man during the theft.

"The vehicle’s owner approached the offender as he was in the process of breaking in, before he made threats with the screwdriver he was carrying," Miles said.

Despite this, the man left the scene with the car.

Shortly after, at around 2 pm, the stolen vehicle was seen outside a Northcote superette.

The man reportedly entered the store, took tobacco products and money, and left in the same vehicle.

By this point, Police had been notified, and their Eagle helicopter tracked the car’s movements.

"From overhead, we could see that the alleged offender’s driving became very erratic," said Acting Inspector Miles.

Although no ground pursuit was underway, Eagle continued to provide updates to officers.

At one point, the man reportedly performed a U-turn into oncoming traffic before correcting his course.

The incident concluded near the Greville Road on-ramp, where Police managed to arrest the driver.

The man, now in custody, is facing charges of burglary, assault, intentional damage, and reckless driving.

Acting Inspector Miles added, "It was very fortunate that no one was injured during the incident, and our staff worked together to bring it to a safe conclusion."