Boy wielded knife after father seized burglar

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Fresh details have emerged about a scuffle that led to a 15-year-old boy stabbing an intruder caught in the garage of his family home.

The Weekend Herald has learned the West Auckland teenager allegedly stabbed the 19-year-old a total of four times during two scuffles with a small kitchen knife he carried from inside the house.

A source said the 15-year-old's father heard a noise outside his Henderson address just before 1am on Thursday. He went to investigate and saw that the window of his garage had been tampered with.

The man went back inside the house and woke his son, who grabbed the knife on the way to the garage - unbeknown to his father.

As his father went into the garage, the 15-year-old waited outside.

The source said the 19-year-old, who allegedly removed a window, heard the older man and tried to escape. He jumped out of a window, landing on the 15-year-old. The pair scuffled and the 15-year-old allegedly stabbed the older teenager, who then ran away.

It is understood the father chased the alleged intruder and grabbed him. A second scuffle ensued and the son allegedly stabbed the 19-year-old again.

The alleged intruder, from Coatesville near Auckland, was taken to hospital in a serious condition. He underwent at least one surgery and was moved from the surgical high dependency unit to a general ward yesterday afternoon.

The family of the 15-year-old - who the Weekend Herald has decided not to name - declined to comment on the incident. However, lawyer Greg Presland issued a statement on their behalf yesterday.

"He and his family have co-operated fully with the police. They are confident that after giving the circumstances full consideration the police will not want to take the matter any further," Mr Presland said. "He has never been in any sort of trouble before. He and his family have found this incident to be extremely stressful and they wish to preserve their anonymity ... That is all that the family wish me to say at this stage."

Police refused to speak about the case. "We are unable to comment on the version of events as provided by your sources quite simply because the matter is the subject of an ongoing police investigation," said Detective Senior Sergeant Stan Brown.

He confirmed no charges had been laid against anyone in relation to the stabbing at this stage.

Mr Brown said police had hoped to interview the 19-year-old on Thursday night, but due to his condition they had not yet spoken to him.

"We hope to be able to speak with him within the next 24 hours."