Thieves armed with baseball bats drove a car through the front doors of a Waikato petrol station in an early morning robbery.
Police said a stolen white Mazda smashed into the Mobil station at Karapiro at 12.40am.
Five people, armed with two bats, took tobacco and cigarettes before leaving the scene in a second car, a stolen yellow Mazda Atenza.
The second car was found not long after in Tirau.
Police said one staff member was at the service station at the time of the incident and was shaken but unharmed.
Police are appealing for information from anyone who saw a white Mazda Atenza, registration number HFL43, and a yellow Mazda Atenza, registration CPJ6, in the area.