Two cases of ATM "shoulder surfing" have come before Auckland courts today, covering tens of thousands of dollars of alleged offending.

A fire which destroyed a house and damaged another was started by a Dunedin man trying to inhale cannabis over an lpg heater, the Dunedin District Court has been told.

Silver Fern Farms faces a bill of up to $3 million after it was ruled it made more than 100 Dunedin seasonal meat workers redundant.

A surge in the supply of methamphetamine is being pushed by gangs on a "willing market" in the south, police say.

The case of a promising young rugby player who avoided conviction for breaking a man's jaw has again raised concerns that sportspeople have a 'get-out-of-jail-free card'.

An osteopath who left electric acupuncture needles in a patient's backside while he went to a cafe for sausage rolls has been found to have discredited his profession.

Dunedin motorists were stunned to see a man sitting on a couch and holding on to the rear of a moving car as it left a trail of sparks behind him.

A former Dunedin student and aspiring model has been jailed for four years on drugs charges.

A Kiwi researcher is studying how children exercise restraint from tempting lollies - and what it says about their likely self-control later in life.

A 7-year-old boy has made a remarkable recovery after being crushed by a children's motorised train at a Halloween event in Dunedin.

A "predatory" Dunedin lawyer who stole $2.8 million from 32 clients over 21 years in one of the longest-running frauds in NZ history has today been jailed for more than eight years.

Dunedin Botanic Garden staff are on high alert following a break-in by someone they believe was looking for hallucinogenic drug-producing cacti.

A fish tank at cash-strapped Dunedin Hospital cost $73,000 to install and more than $1000 a week to run in its first year.

Staff at a prison where a Dunedin man died in custody knew he was coming with drugs concealed in his body, a Coroners Court hearing has heard.

Car buyers appear unlikely to face charges as a police investigation into the Dunedin City Council's alleged $1.5 million Citifleet fraud draws to a close.

A huge macrocarpa tree exploded, sending pieces 70m into the air, after it was struck by lightning during a spectacular storm in Dunedin yesterday.

"It's a shame it wasn't a good old Kauri door", says the owner of a Dunedin flat damaged by an English rugby league star.

Scottish tourist Connor Robertson came to New Zealand in search of a holiday and somebody else's wedding. Here's why.

An England league player is facing disciplinary action after being filmed destroying a door at a student flat in Dunedin yesterday.

A city-wide blackout left Dunedin streets in the dark for half an hour last night, as concerns are raised about the reliability of the city's street lighting.

A broken toe put missionary Pete Johnstone - recently returned from West Africa - at the centre of an Ebola scare in Dunedin.

Police are offering a $50,000 reward to crack a cold case concerning the suspected homicide of a Dunedin mother.

A woman who was hit by a ute in Dunedin on Saturday remains in a serious but stable condition in Dunedin Hospital.

A 36-year-old Dunedin man may be charged after allegedly bringing a knife into the central Dunedin Work and Income New Zealand office.