A man has died after being shot by police in the South Island town of Kurow late last night.
Police closed the road near a house where a man was shot dead in Kurow, northwest of Oamaru. Photo: RNZ / Tim Brown
Southern District Acting Commander Darryl Sweeney said police were called to a man's property about 9.05pm in Freyberg Avenue after he threatened suicide.
He said the man was armed with a firearm, but began speaking with officers when they found him about 10.50pm.
The Armed Offenders Squad and police negotiation team were called from Dunedin but before those teams arrived, the man "confronted police while armed with the firearm and was shot once," Mr Sweeney said.
He said the officers gave first aid immediately and he was taken to Dunedin Hospital, but later died there.
He said the family of the man were being offered support, as were the officers involved.
The Independent Police Conduct Authority was notified and a critical incident investigation was also under way, Mr Sweeney said.
A Kurow local said everybody in town knew the man, who he described as kind and community-minded.
He said the man's death would have huge repercussions for the town.
Freyburg Avenue, Kurow, where the man lived. Photo: RNZ / Tim Brown
Minister of Police Stuart Nash said police were called by a family member to help the man.
Mr Nash said the circumstances then changed rapidly and police were confronted with a firearm.
"It is now appropriate to leave further investigations to independent agencies, including the IPCA and the Coroner," he said.
He offered his sympathies and condolences to the family of the man who has died.
"The circumstances for his family and the person who made the 111 call would have been frightening and I acknowledge the trauma they are going through," he said.
"Police and victim support will help them deal with the days ahead.
"I also have concerns for the impact on the local police officers and other emergency services who were first on the scene, as well as hospital staff in Dunedin."
Mr Nash said the community was close-knit and many people would be affected, and encouraged people to make the most of support services.
Waitaki mayor Gary Kircher said the man's death would affect the whole town.
Such situations were always a tragedy, and even more so in a small town like Kurow, Mr Kircher said.
He wanted the people of Kurow to know that the whole community was thinking of them and the emergency service personnel involved.
Residents of Freyberg Avenue, where the man lived, said the man lived alone and kept to himself, but was friendly and well-known and his death would be a loss to the community.
Locals were struggling to comprehend what had happened, they said.
The case will be referred to the coroner.
