KEY POINTS:
A teenager shot in the face during a terrifying robbery in a public park has told how he came just centimetres from death after the pellet narrowly missed his eye.
"If that had gone into my eye at that range then I would have died, " Matthew Sparrow
said shortly before he was wheeled into an operating theatre at Middlemore Hospital yesterday afternoon.
The 18-year-old St Kentigern College student was shot three times with a BB gun. He said his assailant would have known his slug gun could cause damage.
"He can think about that if he's reading this. He would have been up on a murder charge. "
Matthew was at a park in Remuera with his girlfriend and eight friends when he was shot in the face and chest on Friday night.
One pellet caused bruising to his chest and two others hit his face, one just centimetres from his eye.
It was removed on Saturday, and the second pellet was removed from his lower cheek during the operation yesterday afternoon.
The incident follows the stabbing of another teenager, Auckland Grammar School student Augustine Borrell, at a party in Herne Bay a week ago. Concerns have been raised about marauding groups of youths looking for parties to break up or other groups of teens to hassle.
Matthew and his family say they are acutely aware how easily the aggravated robbery could have been a homicide investigation.
"We could have had another Augustine Borrell this weekend and if something isn't done we are going to," said his father, Simon Sparrow.
"I just want parents to realise that you think your kids are in a group of 10 and having an innocent gathering and aren't bothering anybody, then this happens.
"Our message in a way was you have got to look after your kids, you have got to know where they are. Obviously parks are now a high-risk area."
Matthew said he wanted to tell his story in the hope other young people would be more aware of what could happen at night. He also hoped it would help find his attacker.
Matthew and his friends were "just chilling" in the playground of the Upland Rd park when two youths appeared asking if there was a party they could crash.
The group said they didn't know of one so the pair left, but reappeared soon after with blue "gangsta-style bandannas" over their faces.
One was armed with a BB gun, the other a screwdriver.
"He had his gun out in his gangsta pose," said Matthew.
"I knew they were serious about getting phones and money, but inside I was just thinking they were just a joke."
He thought the gun was only a cap gun so he was more angry about what the robbers were doing than concerned for his safety.
Things became more serious when the gun was held to the head of one of Matthew's friends and a screwdriver was held to his girlfriend's head.
The gun was then pointed at Matthew's head. "I thought it was a cap gun. As I stood up eye to eye that's when he went bang, bang. I just crouched down to the ground, ducked and covered my face."
Despite seeing "the smallest of flashes" when the gun went off Matthew didn't realise the seriousness of what had happened.
"I could feel [my cheek] was swollen but I just thought it was from the powder coming out and hitting me. I still had no idea it was pellets."
The gunman started to run away and a furious Matthew gave chase.
"I was really pissed off that they had held a gun to my mate's head and to my girlfriend's head and robbed us.
"He obviously knew his gun wasn't a cap gun and he had just put two bullets in me. I was just screaming at him, I was so angry."
Matthew caught the gunman and started fighting him while his mate went after the second robber. Others went for help.
The injured teenager believes this might have been when the gun went off for a third time, hitting him in the chest.
"They both started running away and we chased after them but they were pretty quick. I was starting to feel pain so by the time I got [back] to the park I collapsed."