Police are seeking information on the whereabouts of a 25-year-old man after an alleged kidnapping in the Auckland suburb of Beach Haven.
Ralph Park is wanted after the April 2 incident and police believe he may be seeking medical attention after being shot.
A trio of people arrived at a property just before 7:30pm on Tuesday where a woman was alleged forced into a vehicle and kidnapped.
A neighbour described hearing an “ear-splitting” gunshot and there was “lots of commotion”.
The injured woman was found later that day at a Greenhithe address on Auckland’s North Shore.
Waitematā CIB Detective Inspector Callum McNeill said the investigation team has now obtained a warrant to arrest Park.
“Our team has been undertaking a number of enquiries to locate Park so far, including search warrants in the Auckland area.”
Police believe Park will need medical attention for an injury sustained on Tuesday night.
“We believe Park was shot – either by his own achievements or accidentally by his accomplice,” Detective Inspector McNeill says.
“This has come to light during the investigation this week, including reviewing CCTV footage and forensically examining the vehicle involved in the kidnapping.”
Police are speaking with healthcare facilities.
“It’s not uncommon in these situations, where people evading accountability try to use a false name,” McNeill says.
“While I can’t go into details around the specifics of our enquiries, we are absolutely committed to locating and arresting him.”
Park is 166 centimetres tall and is of thin build.
“You should consider him dangerous, and we advise that you do not approach him.”
Two people were arrested on Wednesday in a dramatic scene at Headquarters bar and restaurant on Auckland’s waterfront.
Security camera footage, supplied exclusively to the Herald, shows a group of police officers entering Headquarters bar and restaurant in Auckland’s Viaduct to apprehend and handcuff a man and woman who had just ordered drinks.
A 32-year-old man appeared in the North Shore District Court yesterday charged with kidnapping a woman, carrying a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison.
The man did not seek bail during his appearance, when his lawyer Olivia Kazmierow sought interim name suppression as he had family in Australia who did not know of his charges.
His application was granted on an interim basis for 72 hours to allow him time to tell his mother. He was remanded in custody to reappear on April 23, when he will enter a plea.
The man is also charged with unlawfully entering the Beach Haven home on Tuesday where the woman was living, using a firearm during a burglary and wounding the woman with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, also carrying a 14 year maximum term.
The arrested woman appeared in the Auckland District Court yesterday.
She was not charged over the kidnapping but was charged with failing to carry out obligations relating to a computer search, and also had outstanding warrants-to-arrest.
The woman was remanded without plea until April 19 and granted interim name suppression.
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