Willington - Saba:
The New Zealand Police on Wednesday said a driver ran over two policemen who were on a pedestrian patrol in the early hours of New Year's Day, leaving one of them killed and other with critical wounds.
The attack caused a huge uproar in New Zealand, where the killing of police officers while on duty is a rare occurrence.
Police Commissioner Richard Chambers said that the driver hit the two officers with his car at high speed while they were on a routine patrol in a parking lot, before turning and crashing into a police car.
A 32-year-old man was arrested and charged in connection with the incident shortly after it happened, at around 2 a.m. local time, and will appear before court.
The female officer died at a local hospital hours after the incident. The other officer is in a serious condition but is expected to make a full recovery, Chambers said.
A third officer in the police car suffered a concussion and two other people were injured, including one who came to the aid of the injured officers.
Chambers condemned the "senseless act of an individual who appeared intent on causing harm," although he did not indicate a motive. "There was no indication, at this stage, that what was about to happen had happened," he said.
"The woman who was killed, Sergeant Lynn Fleming, had been an officer for 38 years and was a well-known and well-respected member of the Nelson community," he added.
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