Police say New Zealand shooter’s death was suicide

Written by Alma Angeles on

More in Australia and Oceania:

Police officers cordon off an area near the site of a shooting in central Auckland on July 20, 2023. New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said a shooting that killed two people in central Auckland hours before the women’s football World Cup opener July 20, 2023 was not linked to a national security threat and the tournament will go ahead as planned. (Photo by Saeed KHAN / AFP)

WELLINGTON, July 24, 2023 (AFP) – The gunman who slayed two victims during a mass shooting in Auckland on the opening day of the Women’s World Cup killed himself during a shoot-out, New Zealand police said Monday.

The tournament’s kickoff in Auckland last Tuesday was overshadowed when a gunman opened fire at a building site on the city’s waterfront.

A post-mortem of the 24-year-old gunman showed he was injured when shots were exchanged with armed officers, but Detective Superintendent Ross McKay said “it has also confirmed his fatal injury was self-inflicted”.

Four of those injured in the shooting are still recovering in hospital, including an officer “who will have a long road to recovery”, McKay added.