A man has been charged with the indecent assault of a five-year-old girl at Cooks Beach on the Coromandel last year.
Police say scientific developments played a major part in today's arrest.
The 35-year-old is charged with an indecent act on a child under 12 years old.
Police say the girl had run ahead of her family from the beach through a reserve when a naked man ran out in front of her and grabbed her on 5 January last year.
The accused will appear in the Hamilton District Court on Wednesday.