A woman has been taken hostage at Westfield ManukauA woman has escaped unharmed after an armed stranger grabbed her and held her hostage in an Auckland shopping mall for 90 minutes. The woman was from Christchurch and had been at the shopping mall with her teenage daughter, Pyne said. A food court worker said it all unfolded when a middle aged man entered the food court in an agitated, apparently drunk and disorientated state. She said his behaviour caught security's eye and they started to move in on him - clearing shoppers from the food court area. Jacque Jonson, Westfield Manukau acting centre manager, said the shopping mall was reopened and trading again around midday.

Source: Stuff November 08, 2018 20:59 UTC