Auckland Ferry Building incident: Negotiators coax men down with fast food, both in police custody

The two men who scaled the Ferry Building in downtown Auckland, closing roads nearby as police responded just across the road from where a shooter killed two men on a construction site yesterday, were coaxed down with fast food.

About 5pm, police said they had taken the pair into custody. Police negotiators offered them fast food to get them down, the latest incident where an offer of food has got people down from rooftops.

Quay St, between Lower Albert and Commerce Sts, was cordoned off since about midday.

“Police spent several hours negotiating with the two people, who have been brought down from the top of the building safely,” a police spokeswoman said.

Police said there was no immediate threat to the public, but the area was cordoned off as a precaution.

Charges against the pair are being considered.

A spokeswoman for police confirmed to the Herald the two men were offered fast food to coax them down.

The promise of fried chicken and burgers proved to be the winning negotiation chip that got five youths off the roof of an Oranga Tamariki facility in South Auckland this month - after a stand-off that lasted about 30 hours.

Today, police negotiators were at the scene on Quay St after getting calls about 12.15pm.

“One person remains atop the building, while the other is inside the clocktower,” a police spokesperson said earlier.

Part of downtown Auckland has been cordoned off after two men scaled the Ferry Building on Quay St, a day after a shooter killed two men on a construction site across the road. Photo / Will Hainsworth

A witness told the Herald a man had broken into the building yesterday when the shooting incident unfolded.

Police negotiators are at downtown Auckland's Ferry Building after two men scaled the building, and the area has been cordoned off. Photo / Alex Burton

“Six or so police officers went to the roof. The man has been there for an hour now,” the witness said.

“At first police said there was no harm but he has a fire extinguisher [and] the building has been evacuated,” he said.

Auckland Transport told commuters to expect delays going to and from the ferry wharves, that cancellations were possible, and bus services were also impacted.

Part of downtown Auckland has been cordoned off after two men scaled the Ferry Building on Quay St, a day after a shooter killed two men on a construction site across the road. Photo / Alex Burton

Yesterday, 24-year-old Matu Tangi Matua Reid entered a construction site on Queen St with a shotgun and killed two people as school children and workers arrived in the city during the morning commute.

Reid - a convicted domestic abuser who was serving a home detention sentence - was later found dead, barricaded inside the high-rise’s lift shaft, after an exchange of fire with police.

Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.