'I held his hand as he died', friend tells of shooting victim

The offender crashed his vehicle after fleeing the property where the shootings took place. Photo / NZPA

A Hawkes Bay man told last night of his desperate bid to stop his best mate from getting involved in an armed confrontation that left a neighbour dead and the victim's 8-year-old son injured.

The man, who spoke to the Herald on condition of anonymity, said he held the shot man's hand as he died.

Late last night, armed police arrested Wilson Apatu, 39, whom they had been hunting since the killing about 2.30pm in the settlement of Waikoau, near Tutira on the Napier-to-Wairoa road.

Apatu was found at a house in Valerie St, Clive, after a relative phoned the police to say he was there.

Cordons were immediately set up on all roads in and out of Clive, but Apatu gave himself up when the police arrived at the house.

He is expected to appear in the Napier District Court today.

Earlier, the police had put northern Hawkes Bay into lockdown as they hunted the fugitive.

His best mate told the Herald he spoke to Apatu on the phone five minutes before the shooting and became concerned when his friend told him: "The boys are coming."

The friend inferred this meant other mates were on the way to help Apatu in a dispute over young boys allegedly stealing property from his home and calling him abusive names.

He said he became concerned about Apatu's intentions.

"I went, 'Wilson, don't do it, I can't let you do this.' He said, 'By the time you ring the cops, it takes them 40 minutes to get here', and I just hung up the phone and I got immediately on to those people, so they locked their doors.

"It was like, 'Do I toss in my mate or not?' So I did."

The best mate, who was still distraught last night, said he felt guilty for not being able to save the neighbour's life. "I'm just kicking myself I couldn't think of more [to do]."

He said the victim, aged 32, had shifted back to the district from Auckland about two weeks ago.

The friend said he didn't have the family's phone number so rang the closest neighbours, pleading for them to keep the family inside.

But within minutes he heard gunshots and rushed to the scene. He found the man dying in a bedroom.

"I held his hand as he died," he said. "He says, 'Man, I didn't heed your warning'. They did lock their doors but he didn't take it seriously like I was trying to tell them."

Detective Senior Sergeant Sean Hansen said the gunman fled the property in his own vehicle, but crashed it. He then held up a couple at gunpoint and stole their car.

A resident - who would not be named - said the couple were elderly and had pulled over at the crash site.

Neighbours claimed Apatu had not been in a good state of mind lately and had been drinking heavily.

He had told people he wanted to "go out in a hail of bullets".

Apatu's friend said his mate suffered from agoraphobia - a fear of open spaces - and "must have just flipped".

He had been seen by doctors for many years and was under the authority of the Mental Health Act.

The friend said Apatu "knew he was going crazy about two weeks ago" so asked his doctor to change his medication.

The man said that earlier yesterday, he took Apatu some meat for his pig dog. He noticed blood on his face and asked him about it. Apatu said it was from hunting.

The mate didn't think any more of it until later, when he learned Apatu had been at the neighbour's house and ended up in a physical altercation.

The man said he was stunned by yesterday's events. "I'm walking around in circles ... I did the best I could."

He said he had told the police where Apatu might be. But he didn't think he would see him again. He didn't believe his mate would be captured alive.

The 8-year-old boy, who was shot in the arm, was last night in a stable condition in Hawkes Bay Hospital.

It is nearly four months since gunman Jan Molenaar shot dead police officer Len Snee and injured three other men.

- ADDITIONAL REPORTING: NZPA