Police go door-to-door in hunt for elderly woman's killer

Police Detective Inspector Mark Gutry at the house where the attack took place. Photo / Dean Purcell

Detectives were today going door-to-door in the hunt for clues to the vicious killing of a 80-year-old South Auckland woman.

Yin Ping Yang died in Auckland's Middlemore Hospital yesterday afternoon after suffering internal injuries and broken ribs in a home invasion in Manurewa on Wednesday night.

Before she died, Mrs Yang managed to give police a description of her attacker - a Maori or Polynesian man, aged 30 to 40, dressed in a white T-shirt and black shorts.

Detective Inspector Mark Gutry said the intruder broke into the Saralee Drive house at about 5.30pm on Wednesday.

The first Mrs Yang was aware of him was when he approached her from behind and put his hand over her mouth.

He then proceeded to beat her up before bundling her into a wardrobe.

She managed to scramble her way out before collapsing unconscious on the living room floor where she was found by her son returning home at 10pm.

He thought she may have had a fall and drove before her to hospital.

But when she regained consciousness the next day, she told him she had been attacked and police were called.

Mr Gutry said police spoke to Mrs Yang in hospital before her condition deteriorated.

She remembered being bundled into a closet but had no idea how long her attacker stayed in her house.

Police said that officers would today continue interviewing Mrs Yang's neighbours to see if they heard or saw anything on Wednesday night and appealed for anyone with information to come forward.

They still have no motive for the attack because nothing appeared to have been stolen and it was not believed she was sexually violated.

A post-mortem will be carried out tomorrow.

The attack was about 1km from the Manurewa liquor store where Navtej Singh was fatally shot a week ago.

- NZPA