Police Commissioner Richard Chambers on the beat to remember fallen Nelson Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming

The first hours of a new year are meant to hold promise — a fresh start, a clean slate. But in Nelson, as the city stirred under the glow of streetlights and celebration, tragedy struck. Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming would not see the dawn of 2025. In an instant, a routine patrol turned catastrophic, leaving a community shattered and marking a heartbreaking first in New Zealand’s policing history. Senior journalist Anna Leask reports.

Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming. Photo / NZ Police

It was 2.10am when all hell broke loose in Buxton Square.

Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming, 62, and Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay were foot patrolling the area when a vehicle driven by a member of the public drove towards them at speed.

Both officers were hit – hard – and were critically injured.

Soon after, at Nelson Hospital, Fleming died. The damage to her body was catastrophic and unsurvivable.

Ramsay was rushed into the surgery that would save his life.

Around this time, Commissioner Richard Chambers’ cellphone rang.

He had just gone to bed after finishing a shift with his troops on the beat in the Tauranga area.

“I’d just gone to sleep, and the phone rang, and that was when I was advised about what had happened,” he said.

Police Commissioner Richard Chambers fronting a press conference hours after his colleague Lyn fleming was killed on duty. Photo / Tim Cuff

“I said to my wife, ‘I’m going to have to turn the light on and iron my shirt and drive to Wellington and get to Nelson as quick as I can’.

“It’s the worst possible thing for any police person – but it’s particularly hard five weeks into your job as a commissioner, which is how I found myself – when you lose a colleague in the line of duty, going about their job that they love for the community.”

Chambers had known Fleming personally for many years. So, he wasn’t only reeling from her violent death professionally.

“I knew Lyn, I worked with Lyn. She was an absolute superstar,” he told the Herald.

“She was one of the most impressive policewomen that I’ve ever worked with. She was a person that I used to call on when I was the Tasman District Commander, when I had a particularly tough issue or thing that I needed to find a sensible way forward for.

“Lynn helped me many times deal with things. She was a remarkable woman who I’m personally very proud to have known and worked with. But all New Zealanders can be proud of the calibre of a police officer like Lyn Fleming.”

A memorial plaque to Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming was attached to the flagpole outside the Nelson Police Station within days of her death. Photo / Tracy Neal

Fleming, 62, is survived by her husband Bryn and adult children Rayna and Aren; parents Ray and Colleen and siblings Woody, Carol and Jo.

The Fleming family did not want to speak about the tragedy ahead of the anniversary.

By then, they would have endured their first Christmas without Fleming – and are undoubtedly preparing themselves for the trial of the man charged over her death.

Hayden Tasker, 32, is facing six charges, including the murder of Fleming and the attempted murder of Ramsay.

He is due to go on trial in the High Court at Christchurch in May 2026.

Police allege the brutal incident was “completely unprovoked” and that the vehicle Tasker was driving was “being used as a weapon”.

Hayden Donald Jason Tasker has been charged with murdering Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming. Photo / Tracy Neal

Fleming was the first police officer ever killed in the line of duty in the Nelson area, and the first female police officer killed on the job in New Zealand.

At her funeral, Chambers revealed that as a senior officer, Fleming did not have to work the New Year’s Eve to New Year’s Day shift.

But she wanted to support her staff.

“At the start of the shift, Lyn produced a range of snacks for her colleagues to help keep them going through the night shift,” he said.

“She cared deeply about her staff.”

Chambers will mark the day of Fleming’s death on the frontline in Nelson – taking on the same shift she did alongside her colleagues.

“The right place for me to be on this New Year’s Eve is Nelson, alongside my colleagues who have had a tough year,” he said.

“I’ve made that decision because I know that the team down there, have done it tough - we’ve all done it tough, but not as much as Lyn’s people down there in Nelson and Tasman.

“So I’m going to be out there with them through the night.”

Chambers plans to start the shift “getting behind the barbecue” and feeding those on the late shift.

The Herald attended Fleming's funeral several weeks after her alleged murder.

Then he will head out on the street with Superintendent Tracy Thompson, the Tasman District Commander.

“It’s just the right place to be this year because of Lyn’s death,” he said.

“This time of the year is one of the busiest times for us in policing. There is alcohol consumption, people partying and celebrating - and that’s fine, but that brings with it its own set of issues.

“And also it’s a tough time for family harm. There’s a lot of pressure on families and separated families for all sorts of reasons. So, in policing generally, it’s a busy time of year for us.”

Chambers acknowledged police sacrificed a lot when they work over the holidays, missing time with their own families to keep their communities safe.

“Both police officers and our civilian colleagues sacrifice a lot because we’ve got a job to do,” he said.

“It’s no different for me. I want to be working on New Year’s Eve with my staff because I’m just like them, and I want to be there to support them.”

The family of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming at her funeral. Photo / George Heard

He said it wouldn’t just be Nelson staff thinking of Fleming on January 1 – and in the lead-up and days that followed.

“Police staff working across the country on New Year’s Eve will know that it was that night when Lyn was doing her job and lost her life.

“You know, we’ll be thinking about this for many years to come … I think New Year’s Eve this year is going to be tough, and I have no doubt that through the entire evening it won’t just be my Nelson staff that have that on their mind.”

Chambers said Fleming was formally recognised – alongside the 34 other officers killed in a criminal act – on Police Remembrance Day in September.

“That will be something that we do every year as well.

“But a service for Lyn [on the anniversary] – we’ll work with her family and decide how they would like us to help recognise Lyn.”

Chambers has kept in contact with Fleming’s family throughout the year. He has also spent time with Ramsay.

“I’ll see him when I’m down there. I’ve seen him a number of times during this year – he’s doing remarkably well,” he said.

Commissioner Richard Chambers and Bryn Fleming at his wife's funeral in Nelson. Photo / George Heard

“I’ve also seen Lyn’s son and daughter a number of times during the year, and also her husband, Bryn. I’ve touched base with them and spent some time with each of them.

“It’s been important for me to continue to acknowledge how hard the year’s been for them.”

Chambers said he was extremely proud of the police in Nelson – especially those who were the closest to Fleming.

“I’m very proud of how they’ve come together and supported each other – and I know that it’s been tough for a lot of them during the year.

“And there are people who have thought about whether policing is for them. But they have looked after each other and they are all doing remarkably.

A powerful police haka was performed at Fleming's funeral. Photo / George Heard

He would always be proud of his mate Fleming – her contribution to policing and her dedication to the people in and behind the blue uniform.

“Lyn was a remarkable policewoman who many, many police officers over the years have looked up to,” he said.

“She was a mentor to many in their careers. She was a person who dealt with the really hard stuff and did so incredibly well.

“My enduring memory of Lyn is a policewoman that the entire country can be proud of. She was such a bright soul who made the tough stuff a little bit easier to manage because she was such a supporting leader.

“And, I know that my experience with Lyn is no different to many hundreds of others who have come across her in their careers.”

The funeral for Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming, who was killed in the line of duty on New Years Day, 2025. Photo / George Heard

Anna Leask is a senior journalist who covers national crime and justice. She joined the Herald in 2008 and has worked as a journalist for 20 years with a particular focus on family and gender-based violence, child abuse, sexual violence, homicides, mental health and youth crime. She writes, hosts and produces the award-winning podcast A Moment In Crime, released monthly on nzherald.co.nz