A woman at the centre of a manhunt after a police shooting in New Zealand yesterday has been arrested in West Auckland.

Police said Natalie Bracken was found just after 3pm today, taken into custody without incident, “and is assisting police with enquiries”.

She was wanted on warrants for driving charges and as an accessory to the murder of Constable Matthew Hunt, and is now due to appear in Waitākere District Court on Monday morning.

READ MORE: NZ shooting of police officer ‘shocking’

Waitematā police officer Hunt, 28, was killed, and another officer was shot in the leg amid a hail of bullets fired after a car they had tried to pull over crashed on Friday, in the West Auckland suburb of Massey.

A man who had been loading things into his car on the roadside at the time was also injured when a vehicle hit him. He and the injured officer remain in a stable condition in Auckland Hospital.

Yesterday a 24-year-old man was arrested and charged with murder, attempted murder and dangerous driving.

He was granted interim name suppression at a court appearance via videolink today, and is scheduled to appear in the Auckland High Court on July 8.

Commissioner of Police Andrew Coster earlier today said the police force across New Zealand was mourning Hunt’s death.

The 28-year-old criminology major fullfilled a lifelong dream when he began working as a police officer in 2017, after earlier working as a case manager at Auckland Prison.

Until yesterday, the most recent killing of a police officer in New Zealand was in 2009 in Napier.

This article is republished by the Pacific Media Centre under a partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Auckland police will remain armed until they are “satisfied the right people are in custody” following the fatal shooting of an unarmed officer earlier today, says Police Commissioner Andrew Coster.

The male police officer died in a shooting after a routine traffic stop in the West Auckland suburb of Massey this morning. A second officer who was also shot is in a stable condition in hospital.

In a news conference held late this afternoon, Commissioner Coster said police were speaking to “two people of interest” after the fatal shooting.

READ MORE: As it happened: Police officer shot dead

He said a firearm had been recovered.

The two unarmed officers were shot during the incident that happened at around 10.30am on Reynella Drive in Massey.

New Zealand police are usually unarmed. Coster said during his briefing that the police officers were not carrying arms when they made their routine traffic stop.

Until today, it has been more than 10 years since a police officer was killed in New Zealand in the line of duty.

Since 1890, 22 officers have been shot dead in the line of duty, with a further 10 having been killed in other types of attacks.

Multiple shots
Commissioner Coster said multiple shots from a long barrelled firearm were fired at the officers after they approached a vehicle that had crashed after they had tried to pull it over.

He said a “large number of police from across Tāmaki Makaurau [Auckland]” as well as the Armed Offenders Squad were involved in the hunt for the perpetrators.

“Our priority is to hold this offender to account,” Coster said.

The incident saw several schools and pre-schools in Massey locked down while police and other emergency services descended on the suburb.

Coster confirmed the police officer’s death at an earlier media briefing in Wellington this afternoon.

He described the death as shocking and said it was a terrible day.

A member of the public who was hit by a fleeing vehicle has minor injuries.

‘Worst news’ for police
“This is a shocking situation, this is the worst news police and their families can receive.

“The incident points to the real risk our officers face as they go about their jobs every day. Staff safety and welfare are our absolute priority and our whole organisation is in a state of shock as a result of this event.”

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the death of the police officer is devastating news.

“To lose a police officer is to lose someone working for all of us, but also a family member, someone’s loved one and friend. My condolences go to them and to their police whānau.”

Meanwhile in a joint media conference with the Police Association in Napier this afternoon, Police Minister Stuart Nash said the news of the fatal shooting was absolutely gutting.

He said he was heartbroken for the family and colleagues of the officer who had died and described it as a tragic day for the police family.

“Over 10,000 men and woman have lost a valued colleague,” he said.

This article is republished by the Pacific Media Centre under a partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz