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It’s sad that crime has escalated to the point where people are giving guns to police, says a former gang member who now has a community trust.
A man was arrested after police were shot during a manhunt this morning in Whangārei.
Several shots were fired at a patrol after a vehicle fled from a police checkpoint on Te Hononga Street in Ōtāngarei in the early hours of the morning.
A neighbor who lives near where the police were shot told him Control he heard a gun go off – “bang, bang, bang.”
Another woman who lives in the neighborhood said the incident was terrible and that she did not feel safe.
“Young people are on the roads, doing wheelies. Now it is getting worse here,” he said, adding that it would be better if there were more police around.
Northland District Commander Superintendent Tony Hill said earlier today that officers will carry firearms for the next few days. Since an arrest was made Tuesday night, that will no longer continue.
“We take these issues very seriously, as if it were a community member who was shot, and the outcry from the community is really positive this morning. They are just as upset as we are.”
Former gang member Martin Kaipo, who is now CEO and co-founder of the community organization Ōtāngarei Trust, said the area was affected by drugs and gangs.
Photo: RNZ / Dan Cook
“We are communities of low socioeconomic status. There is a great dependence on unemployment benefits. There is a high level of young Maori seeking leadership.”
Kaipo said he didn’t know anything about this specific incident, but it fit in with normal gang behavior.
Things had gotten more cruel than when he was in a gang two decades ago, and the incident was concerning, he said.
“When it happens, it’s usually a confrontation over zoning or how their areas like their communities and things like that. They are very protective and will protect you at any cost when the cost is through open street warfare or vehicle warfare.
“The sad thing is that now the crime that is turning against the police has intensified. That is sad, but if they are willing to turn to the police, they are willing to turn against anyone.”
He said everyone must work together to prevent incidents like this from happening: families talking to their youth, better law and order and communities working together.
“We don’t care what happens on the next street or next door. We have become so ingrained in ourselves … the old story was that it takes an entire town to raise a child.”
