Residents of a quiet Wattle Downs street have described the frightening moments surrounding a suspected double homicide in which a man and woman were found dead. Police say a 30-year-old man is in custody and is being spoken to as investigators work to establish whether he was involved.
eLocal Report: Based on reporting by Jessica Hopkins for RNZ HERE.
A South Auckland neighbourhood remains at the centre of a double-homicide investigation after a man and woman were found dead at a Gambare Place property in Wattle Downs on Thursday.
Police have confirmed they are speaking with a 30-year-old man who is in custody, although investigators have not established publicly whether he was involved in the deaths.
Detective Inspector Tofilau Faamanuia Va'aelua of Counties Manukau CIB said police were working to determine the man's involvement and would provide further information when available.
The investigation follows a dramatic sequence of events described by neighbours, including the sound of repeated gunshots, a vehicle arriving and leaving at speed, and a woman screaming.
A Car Comes 'Bolting Up the Street'
A neighbour identified by RNZ only as Robbie said he had been outside when he heard a vehicle approaching quickly.
"We hear a car come bolting up the street and he stopped in front of that house there," he told RNZ.
According to Robbie's account, someone got out of the vehicle and ran towards the house. He then heard what he described as four "pop" sounds.
The car subsequently drove away, Robbie said, followed by the sound of a woman screaming.
The account is a witness recollection and police have not publicly confirmed that sequence as the established circumstances of the killings.
When officers arrived, Robbie said police surrounded the property and repeatedly called for the occupants to come outside and identify themselves. He said this continued for around 20 minutes without anyone emerging.
Perhaps most unsettling for the neighbourhood was how recently the victims had apparently arrived. Robbie told RNZ the pair had moved into the street only the previous week and that he had spoken to them briefly for the first time on Wednesday.
By the following afternoon, both were dead.
Two People Found Dead
Emergency services were called to Gambare Place at about 1.45pm on Thursday following reports of an unresponsive woman.
She was pronounced dead at the scene.
During a subsequent search of the property, police located a man who was also pronounced dead.
Police said the offender or offenders had left before officers arrived.
By early Friday morning, armed officers remained outside the cordoned property while forensic and crime-scene personnel were seen entering the home.
Police at the scene of the suspected double homicide on Friday morning. Photo: RNZ / Jessica Hopkins.
Residents Describe Gunfire
Another long-time Gambare Place resident, Dianna Kereopa-Turner, told RNZ her household initially mistook the noise for a nail gun being used on a sleepout they were constructing.
It quickly became apparent something more serious was happening.
Kereopa-Turner said her sister came out of her room saying somebody outside was shooting, prompting the family to gather everyone inside and remain there.
She told RNZ the deaths were particularly disturbing because the victims had only recently moved into the neighbourhood.
The incident also unfolded in a residential area containing children and elderly residents.
Police cordons subsequently prevented a number of people from returning to their homes on Gambare Place and neighbouring Volante Avenue. Armed officers were stationed around the area while police worked at the scene.
Cordons in place around the house in Wattle Downs. Photo: RNZ / Erin Johnson.
Community Caught in the Investigation
Another resident, identified as Bobbie, said she attempted to return from a doctor's appointment at about 2.45pm but found the street already closed.
She then went to collect her niece from school, only to find the school was also locked down.
Residents were eventually permitted to return to their homes after 5pm, according to RNZ.
Police were also observed working behind a white tarpaulin on Volante Avenue. Police later explained that staff had moved the victims away from the immediate scene to a safer location in an effort to provide first aid while other officers continued clearing and securing the area.
Va'aelua described what had happened as an "awful set of events" that would understandably be unsettling for those directly involved and the wider community.
Police Say Incident Appears Isolated
Police have said the incident appears to be isolated, although investigators have cautioned that they are not yet in a position to rule anything out.
That distinction matters while the homicide investigation remains active.
The presence of a 30-year-old man in police custody does not itself establish responsibility for the deaths. Police have said they are speaking with him and working to determine whether he was involved.
Likewise, accounts from neighbours provide important information about what they witnessed and heard, but the precise sequence of events, motive and circumstances surrounding the deaths remain matters for investigators to establish.
For residents of Wattle Downs, however, the immediate impact is already clear: two people are dead, armed police and forensic investigators have descended on their neighbourhood, and a community that residents describe as home to families, children and elderly people has suddenly become the scene of a double-homicide investigation.
Anyone with information that could assist police has been asked to contact 105.
Source
Jessica Hopkins, RNZ, Car seen 'bolting up' street before gunshots heard in Wattle Downs suspected double homicide.
Independent reporting. Original context. Credited sources.