'Very cowardly attack': Driver runs down two New Zealand police officers, killing one

The New Zealand Police Commissioner stated that in the early hours of New Year's Day, a driver struck two New Zealand police officers who were patrolling on foot, resulting in the death of one and serious injury to the other. The incident has shocked the nation, as it is extremely rare for on-duty police officers to be killed in New Zealand.

Police said on Thursday that Senior Constable Lynne Fleming became the first female police officer in New Zealand history to be killed by a criminal act while on duty. During the attack on Wednesday, a car struck the officers "at high speed" as they were conducting a routine patrol of a parking lot, and the driver then turned the car around and rammed a police vehicle. Police Commissioner Richard Chambers told reporters in the South Island city of Nelson that Fleming died several hours later at a local hospital.

A 32-year-old man was arrested shortly after the incident, at approximately 2:00 a.m. local time (midnight Australian Eastern Daylight Time). He has been charged with eight offenses, including murder, attempted murder, using a vehicle as a weapon to attack, and driving while disqualified. The other officer struck by the car sustained serious injuries but is expected to make a full recovery. Chambers said a third officer in the rammed police car suffered a concussion, and two members of the public were injured, one of whom was injured while coming to the aid of the injured officers.

Chambers condemned the "senseless act by an individual who appeared determined to cause harm," but he did not suggest a motive. Police Minister Mark Mitchell told reporters that the officers "were the subject of a targeted attack, which I think was a very cowardly attack." Prime Minister Christopher Luxon wrote on X that it was a "devastating day for police and the country."

The attack occurred in the downtown area of Nelson, a city of 55,000 people, near streets where the city's New Year's celebrations had concluded two hours earlier. Prior to Wednesday, the last time a New Zealand police officer was killed in the line of duty was in 2020, when an officer was shot and killed by a fleeing driver. According to police records, another 33 officers have died in the line of duty due to criminal acts since 1890. Fleming had been a police officer for 38 years and was a long-time netball coach at a local girls' high school. Chambers said: "She was a mother, a wife, and a well-known and highly respected member of the Nelson community."

The accused man is scheduled to appear in court on Friday. In New Zealand, a murder conviction automatically carries a sentence of life imprisonment, with a minimum non-parole period of at least 10 years set by the presiding judge.