Oamaru police are reminding people to report incidents to them first after someone posted comments about an alleged attempted child abduction on social media.
Over the weekend, on a community Facebook page, quotes were posted from a police officer about an alleged abduction on which members of the public commented, and expressed feelings of concern about public safety.
Sergeant Tony Woodbridge, of Oamaru, said the incident posted on the website of a boy being followed was investigated by police and found not to be sinister.
He said the public should call police about any such occurrence before using social media as a reporting post.
‘‘If there are incidents, we take them on a case-by-case basis. A call like this we treat very seriously. It affects the safety of the community and the perception of safety.''
Sgt Woodbridge said such allegations could cause undue harm or trigger public hysteria.‘‘It can cause things to get out of control. We deal with facts and need to see people face to face.
‘‘Putting it on social media can have a detrimental effect and jeopardise an investigation as well.''
