Three masked men stormed a Hamilton dairy brandishing a plank of wood and a knife on Monday morning.
But a PROTECT Fog Cannon® sent them fleeing empty handed.
Police were called to the attempted robbery at Knighton Road Dairy, opposite the University of Waikato, at 10.40am, Waikato Police Senior Sergeant Simon Cherry said.
Four offenders were involved, with a woman holding the electronic door open, while the three men entered the store with their weapons.
But once the fog canon was deployed, the group fled. They are yet to be caught.
The dairy appears to have anti-theft doors, which have to be opened electronically by the owner.
Nobody was injured.
"The victims are shaken, we're with them now," Cherry said.
The CIB is investigating and the victims are being offered support.
It's not the first time the dairy has been targeted, with another attempted robbery made there last year.
And in 2017, the store was robbed of cash and cigarettes.
STORY CREDIT: WAIKATO TIMES