Police have charged a Whangarei man after a high-powered green laser light was shone into the cockpit of the Northland rescue helicopter as the crew prepared to land.

The family of missing teenager Blake Sinclair will carry out their own private search of the Clutha River after the official search was scaled down, police say.

The search for missing South Otago teenager Blake McKenzie Sinclair will today become a recovery operation, police say.

An extensive search of the Clutha River has failed to locate a teenager who disappeared while kneeboarding yesterday afternoon.

One of the four men who were winched to safety off the coast of Dunedin today says it took only a minute for their boat to go down.

Two Dunedin students rescued from remote bush say the biggest lesson learned from their ordeal is to always carry a locator beacon in the backcountry.

Those responsible for shooting five domesticated goats, one of which took five days to die, are being warned by police.

A solo round-the-world sailor is off and racing again after completing repairs off the Dunedin coast.

A search and rescue helicopter looking for a missing tramper in Nelson has been targeted with a laser during a late night search of the area.

An Australian-owned, Auckland-based organisation has secured one of three contracts to provide home-based services for elderly people in the south of the South Island.

A Mosgiel man who fleeced long-time friends and members of his church of $300,000 has been sent to prison for three years and four months on fraud charges.

The victims of fraudster Brent Murray say they are happy to see some justice done, even though they believe they will never get their money back.

Justice officials have been accused of using concerns about building safety to downgrade regional court services in Otago.

New Zealand's "king" of legal cannabis faces trafficking charges in Australia after allegedly being found with a "commercial quantity" of drugs.

The future of the southern neurosurgery service is now assured, with the announcement $3 million has been raised for the Chair in Neurosurgery at the University of Otago.

The Mayan calendar predicts the world will end next month, but a bevy of brides is set to appease the gods in Waitati tomorrow.

Police are investigating the theft of a brief case containing private information on almost 500 research staff from tertiary institutions.

A 20-year-old woman visiting New Zealand from China has been granted bail after appearing in court to face two counts of careless driving causing death.

Police have charged a 20-year-old woman visiting from China with two charges of careless driving causing death following a double fatal crash near Cromwell.

Two male motorcyclists are confirmed dead - and two young women are seriously injured - after a crash on the Lindis Pass this afternoon.