An M stolen from a McDonald’s restaurant has proven too hot to handle for a New Zealand man, who has turned himself in.

The golden arches were taken from the side of the McDonald’s building in Blenheim’s Main Street early on Sunday morning, with the thief seen running down Freswick Street carrying the M.

The theft prompted police to alert the media and the ensuing publicity proved too much for the 24-year-old builder, who handed himself in to police on Tuesday afternoon.

His motive was to install a new piece of art at his home.

“He stated that he thought the M would look good on his wall,” Constable Andrew Holdaway of Blenheim police said.

He has been charged over the theft and will face Blenheim District Court on October 29.

AAP