Man shot in Far North, police investigating

A man was shot in the coastal village of Mangōnui in the Far North overnight. Photo / Supplied

A woman has described hearing what sounded like a tomcat howling near the scene of a shooting overnight in the Far North.

The woman was inside her bed-and-breakfast house near Mary Hassett Street in Mangōnui when she started to hear strange noises at about 3am.

She could hear a dog continuously barking and said that it sounded distressed.

At around 3.15am she heard a noise that “sounded like a tomcat howling”.

“I said, ‘what on earth was that?’ And my partner thought it was a human,” the woman said.

“It was a strange night. And then of course the helicopter came a bit later and it was just a very disturbed kind of night.”

The picturesque coastal village of Mangōnui in the Far North has become the scene of a shooting overnight. Photo / Mike Scott

Detective Sergeant Dan Brockbank said police were called to Mary Hassett St at about 3.40am after reports a man had been shot.

The victim was airlifted in a critical condition to Whangārei Hospital.

Police confirmed the victim had stabilised and would undergo surgery today.

Brockbank said inquiries were under way to find the person responsible and to establish what took place.

The woman said the community would likely be “rattled” by the incident which was unusual in the small settlement.

Mangōnui is a popular summer destination for holidaymakers, some of which the local bed-and-breakfast owner was hosting overnight.

Despite last night’s unsettling events she wasn’t too worried.

“It doesn’t concern me, I feel as though it’s pretty much an isolated incident and likely to be targeted.”

Brodie Stone is an education and general news reporter at the Advocate. Brodie has spent most of her life in Whangārei and is passionate about delving into issues that matter to Northlanders and beyond.