Police in New Zealand were searching for a suspect after an Australian tourist was killed following what police believe was a random attack on the van where he and his Canadian partner were sleeping inside.
Police in New Zealand were searching for a suspect after an Australian tourist was killed following what police believe was a random attack on the van where he and his Canadian partner were sleeping inside.
Police said the couple were parked at a scenic spot near the coastal town of Raglan when a suspect approached their van just after 3 a.m. local time on Friday.
Det. Insp. Graham Pitkethley told media the suspect fired a number of shots into the van, injuring the Australian tourist. The Canadian woman managed to escape and run away, and called police.
Pitkethley said the suspect then stole the van and drove away with the injured tourist still inside.
CBC News reached out to Global Affairs Canada for comment on the situation.
The deceased was identified in multiple Austalian media reports as Sean McKinnon, from the state of Victoria. McKinnon’s partner was identified as Bianca Buckley.
A Facebook profile with pictures matching those of the news reports identifies Buckley as being from Halifax.
Police found the van at 8 a.m. local time about 75 kilometres away in the village of Gordonton with the body of the Australian inside. It wasn’t immediately clear if the man had died from the wounds he received in the initial attack or had been subject to further violence.
“This is a tragic incident,” Pitkethley said. He said police were supporting the woman, who was “very shocked and distressed.”
He said it was understandable people were worried the suspect remained armed and hadn’t been found.
“I want to reassure the public that we are working hard to identify and locate the offender,” Pitkethley said. “It is our absolute priority.”
Police deployed SWAT-style teams to the scene, and all police in the region began carrying guns as a precaution. New Zealand police typically don’t carry guns on routine patrols, keeping them stored in their cars instead.
