Dad’s shock after 12-year-old shot in Northland while fishing from dinghy

A 12-year-old Northlander was in a dinghy when he felt a sharp pain in his wrist - it turned out to be a slug gun pellet that needed to be surgically removed. Photo / Supplied, NZME graphic

A 12-year-old Northlander had a slug gun pellet surgically removed from his wrist after he was shot while out in his dinghy.

The boy’s dad – who did not want to be named – said the family had ventured to the Tutukākā Coast for a change of scene over Northland Anniversary Weekend.

His son was about 400m offshore in Kowharewa Bay when he felt a sudden, sharp pain in his wrist.

The 12-year-old was fishing in this dinghy 400m offshore at Kowharewa Bay when he felt a sudden sharp pain in his wrist.

“He turned the motor off because he thought he’d been electrocuted. And he rowed all the way back in.”

It was a windy day, and the dad could see his son was struggling to row back to shore.

“He came in crying and he said, ‘I’ve either been shot by my motor, or I’ve been shot’.”

“I said, ‘Maybe it was a bee?’ because at that point it didn’t look like much on his hand.”

That evening, his son barely slept because of the pain.

“On Tuesday me and my wife work, so he went and stayed at my mum and dad’s place.”

They took him to the GP who planned on sending him home with antibiotics, but the grandmother was adamant he needed an X-ray.

By then, the boy couldn’t bend his wrist and his fingers were swelling.

“At about 3pm on Tuesday, we got a call from the doctor’s saying we needed to take him to ED,” the dad said.

They had found a pellet-shaped object in his right wrist.

After a 3.5 hour wait at the Whangārei Hospital Emergency Department, he was seen by a nurse.

She attempted to remove the pellet using tweezers, but it was embedded too deep in his wrist.

An orthopaedic surgeon tried to remove it too but couldn’t, and the boy was booked in for surgery the next morning.

At 8.30am on Wednesday, the pellet was removed.

Luckily, the pellet missed any major nerves and didn’t cause extensive damage.

“I still don’t really know what to think to be honest,” the dad said.

“You just don’t expect your 12-year-old to get shot.”

He felt the pellet had come from one of the boats moored in the bay and wasn’t sure whether it was a misfire or aimed.

When they returned from the hospital, he checked the boat for any other pellets or damage but couldn’t see anything.

However, the dad was more concerned that slug guns were so readily available for people over 18.

He felt if his son had been hit in the head, police could instead be dealing with a homicide case.

A police spokesman said inquiries were in the early stages.

They were notified about the incident on January 28.

Anyone with information has been asked to contact police on 105 quoting file number 250129/2116.

Brodie Stone covers crime and emergency for the Northern Advocate. She has spent most of her life in Whangārei and is passionate about delving into issues that matter to Northlanders and beyond.