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A pedestrian was killed and a man was stabbed at two separate boy racer gatherings in New Plymouth last night.
Sergeant Bruce Mackay of the police central communications centre said the two incidents happened just after 11pm in two different parts of the city where boy racers were gathered.
Cain John Longstaff, 19, from New Plymouth was struck by a car and killed on Centennial Drive on the west side of the city. He was at a place known as the Omata tank farm - a 50km/h speed zone on the outskirts of the urban area, where boy racers regularly gather.
Police earlier said he was standing on the road when he was run into.
A 23-year-old New Plymouth man has been arrested and charged with dangerous driving causing death. He was due to appear in New Plymouth District Court this morning.
About the same time the pedestrian was hit a man was stabbed on the other side of town at a large gathering of boy racers in the Bell Block industrial area.
About 200 people were estimated to have been at the corner of Connett Road and Dehavilland Drive, Mr Mackay said.
A 23-year-old man was approached by a man he didn't know and punched then stabbed in the side.
The knife stayed stuck in his side and friends drove him towards hospital. He began losing consciousness and an ambulance and police were then called.
The knife missed the man's vital organs and he is in a stable condition in Taranaki Base Hospital.
Anyone who witnessed the attack was asked to contact New Plymouth police.
Meanwhile, Christchurch police are cracking dow n boy racers in an operation in the city this weekend.
District road policing manager Inspector Derek Erasmus said there were more than 50 officers working on the operation overnight, including court bailiffs and Land Transport New Zealand staff, and this number would be increased tonight.
So far at least 12 cars had been seized by court bailiffs for unpaid fines and more than 20 were ordered off the road due to their dangerous condition.
- NZPA
