Shooting death, wounding of police officers

"The news that a police officer has been slain and another officer wounded in a deliberate, cold-blooded shooting is absolutely devastating," said President of the New Zealand Police Association, Greg O'Connor.

“Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with the family and friends of Sergeant Don Wilkinson, the officer so tragically killed. We will be supporting them as best we can, as we will the officer who has been shot and wounded.

“Coming so soon after the tragic killing of Sergeant Derek Wootton just two months ago, police officers everywhere, and their families, will again be reeling with the news that one of their number went to work, and didn’t come home. It’s a possibility that is always in the back of our minds as we work to protect the public. But last night’s shootings are a reminder, in the worst possible terms, that the risks police face are real, constant, and deadly serious,” Mr O’Connor said.