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One of Auckland’s top police officers is urging the public to remain calm amid a spate of shootings and stabbings, revealing there have been four homicides in the city in the past fortnight.
Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin hosted a press conference at the Auckland Central Police Station on College Hilltoday regarding the latest probe, this one into a shooting in Grey Lynn a night earlier.
“This is the fourth homicide in 13 days [in Auckland City District]; none of these incidents appear to be linked and they are all separate. It is a tragedy. The timing is incredibly unfortunate,” Baldwin said.
A complete list of homicides in Auckland includes:
Looking back further, another homicide in Pakuranga Heights on August 24 makes for five cases in Auckland within a month. Tuipulotu Vi was shot inside his courier van as he was leaving his home.
Deputy Mayor of Auckland Desley Simpson said the figures were concerning, “but I think we have to appreciate that police are dealing with the situation in all instances”.
Simpson said: “My wider message to Aucklanders is that police are telling us that this particular event [in Grey Lynn], as with others, are isolated between people [who know already one another].
“It wasn’t as if you had a random gunman going around shooting people they don’t know.”
Simpson called the incident in Grey Lynn “an appalling display of violence” and said she felt for residents there. She urged anyone who could help the police investigation to contact them.
“Let’s face it, I can understand why Aucklanders are feeling a bit concerned. I just want to give them confidence, police are saying ‘please stay calm’ - they are asking Aucklanders to stay calm.”
University of Auckland criminologist Dr Ronald Kramer also spoke of the reality of homicide cases, reiterating that victims and perpetrators typically know each other and incidents are rare.
“Most murders are people getting angry and kind of losing their s***. There’s something unpredictable about events like that. It’s probably not a pattern that’s going to repeat,” Kramer said.
“When stuff like this happens, we draw attention to it and we worry about it. But the reality is I wouldn’t be afraid of this.
“It is just so statistically unlikely that anyone would be randomly murdered. The thing that is maybe more disturbing to people is that there is no way to control this kind of phenomenon.”
Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin, who has been leading a slew of homicide investigations around Auckland recently, is advising the public to remain calm. Photo / Alex Burton
The offenders in two of the recent cases, Pakuranga Heights and Grey Lynn, remain outstanding. One person was arrested and charged with murder over the Blockhouse Bay incident, two were arrested over the Mt Wellington incident and one was arrested for the Onehunga incident.
All those arrested have had their first court appearances, with all being granted name suppression and scheduled to appear in the High Court at Auckland on September 18.
Elsewhere in the country, a further five homicide investigations have been launched in the last month.
Among the other cases, an 8-year-old boy was killed in the Hamilton suburb of Bader on September 1, a 60-year-old man died after a family harm incident in Pātea on August 24, two people were found dead in Tūrangi on August 15.
A man was found seriously injured on the side of a state highway in Northland on August 1 and then died at the scene, with a 50-year-old man charged with murder.
And this morning, police launched a homicide investigation in relation to a woman being found dead on a remote piece of Northland coastline on August 2.
Minister of Police Mark Mitchell, meanwhile, acknowledged the number of recent homicides.
“My immediate focus has been on making sure there has been reassurance provided for the communities concerned by these events.
“It highlights the importance of the big public safety programme this Government is implementing, with stronger laws to seize illegal firearms, more police powers to police violent gangs, more capacity in our Corrections system to remove risk from the community and stronger sentencing laws to make sure sentences reflect the seriousness of the offending.
“I want to acknowledge the work of our police, who through quick and thorough investigations are resolving these cases and have made several arrests.
“Police will continue their outstanding work targeting violent gangs and offenders who think they are above the law and can bring violence into our communities.”
Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.
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