Police are considering whether one of two illegal pistols found in Lake Taupō is the murder weapon used in the Ponsonby Rd shooting last month. The firearms, of a type popular with gang members, were discovered close to where the gunman was found dead.
Hone Kay-Selwyn, a member of the Killer Beez gang, gunned down Robert Horne outside a bar in the affluent Auckland suburb in May before fleeing amid a massive manhunt.
The 31-year-old was found dead in his car at a rural property outside Taupō two days later.
At the time of the shooting, police did not recover any firearms. But the Weekend Herald can now reveal an off-duty police officer later found two cut-down Alfa Carbine pistols in Lake Taupō.
Alfa Carbine rifles have become highly prized by criminals because they can be readily cut down into handguns, which are easier to conceal and wield, and have been used in a number of gang shootings.
In recent years, police investigating the black market for guns have uncovered dozens of licensed gun owners who bought Alfa Carbines on behalf of associates who cannot legally purchase them.
The tactic is known as using a “straw buyer”, or retail diversion, which police now believe is the most common way for firearms to end up in criminal hands.
The Herald has also obtained a photograph showing Kay-Selwyn holding a thick wad of cash in one hand, and an Alfa Carbine pistol in the other.
The Alfa Carbines are also prized by criminals because they do not eject shell casings when fired, leaving behind less evidence to link the firearm to any shooting.
No shell chasings were found at the scene of the Ponsonby Rd shooting, police have confirmed. Detective Inspector Chris Barry, the officer in charge of the investigation, also confirmed the pair of guns found in Lake Taupō are cut-down Alfa Carbine rifles.
“Inquiries are being made to establish whether or not these firearms are linked to the Ponsonby homicide investigation last month,” Barry said.
“Forensic testing is being undertaken in this regard, as well as to confirm the calibre of ammunition involved in the shooting.”
Police will not comment on how Kay-Selwyn died because of an ongoing coronial inquiry, but say his death is not suspicious. The coroner also won’t comment. It’s understood Kay-Selwyn had not suffered a gunshot wound.
The news of a link between the Ponsonby Rd shooting and the Alfa Carbine firearms is the latest in a string of investigations involving this particular weapon.
Police probing the black market for guns in New Zealand have in recent years nabbed dozens of licensed gun owners who bought Alfa Carbines on behalf of associates who cannot legally purchase them.
Recently the Firearms Investigation Team (FIT) analysed more than 350,000 sales records over a four-year period, looking for unusual purchases thatindicated potential retail diversion.
One suspicious pattern of spending by two licence holders over three months led to a covert investigation codenamed Operation Birch.
Between June and September 2022, a 75-year-old Auckland man and his daughter purchased 13 firearms and more than 2000 rounds of ammunition from two Gun City stores.
In total, the pair paid more than $21,000 in cash.
But the police allege the father and daughter acted as “straw buyers” on behalf of two younger relatives with links to the Comancheros motorcycle gang.
Eleven of the 13 firearms were models of Alfa Carbines. Police since recovered two, cut down to pistol size, in the possession of a patched Comanchero and a prospect for the gang.
Last year, former Hells Angel and drug dealer Kishor Chandra Singh admitted paying licensed firearms owners to buy 21 Alfa Carbine rifles that he then cut down into pistol revolvers.
Cellphone communications intercepted in 2022 revealed some of the firearms sourced in Napier were destined for Auckland, where there was a spike in gang-related shootings that year.
No coherent explanation has emerged for why Kay-Selwyn, 31, and immersed in gangs for more than half his life, opened fire on Ponsonby Rd on late Sunday, May 5.
He was carrying at least one pistol in the bag slung over his chest when he attempted to enter Chapel Bar about 10pm. Even though the bar didn’t shut for another hour, the bouncers denied him entry because he seemed so out of it.
“He had the glassy eyes, and the way he was communicating ... it was like he wasn’t all there,” Intercede Corporate Services managing director Claudius Ah-Loe, whose security workers were on the door, said last month.
“They said ‘sorry bud, you can’t come in, the bar is closing up soon’.”
Kay-Selwyn then said to the bouncers “are you all good?” before walking off down the road, putting his hand inside his bag and again asking if they were all good.
He continued on then stopped about 100m down the road, by an alleyway where he waited for a few minutes, talking on his phone and constantly looking around.
After about 10 minutes, a group of men including Horne walked past. Ah-Loe said he and his staff knew the four men well as they regularly saw and looked after them at Hotel Ponsonby, another bar down the road.
“They walked past ... they got stopped by the gunman, and they were exchanging words.”
Kay-Selwyn then took out his gun and fired once, missing everyone. The second bullet hit Horne in the head. He fired another four or five shots but they too missed, with bullets clattering into shop awnings.
A security guard took off his jumper and placed it under Horne’s head as a pillow, then performed CPR before police and paramedics arrived. Horne could not be revived and died at the scene.
Police have said they have no evidence of any prior links between the pair.
Ah-Loe said he and his staff did not know if Kay-Selwyn was aiming at the men or just firing wildly. He appeared to be aiming some shots in the direction of Chapel Bar.
“It happened so quickly, we don’t know if he was actually after Rob.”
Ah-Loe, who rushed to the scene shortly after the shooting, paid tribute to Horne.
“Rob was the funniest. He was just full of life.
A long-time friend of Horne’s, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Herald he was a “very likeable guy” and loved by everyone.
He said Horne had a partner and was planning on having children.
“He just had such a big heart,” the man said.
He said Horne was a hard-working drainlayer and enjoyed the outdoors, including hunting, camping and hiking.
As police hunted for Kay-Selwyn, a woman claiming to be his partner took to Facebook to reflect on the incident.
“My inbox is overflowing with messages concerning Hone’s actions [on Sunday] night in Ponsonby,” the woman said.
“I want to express my sincerest condolences to the family and loved ones of the victim. I’m deeply sorry and feel a great sense of shame about the situation.
“I’m still grappling with the fact that Hone took someone’s life.”
George Block is an Auckland-based reporter with a focus on police, the courts, prisons and defence. He joined the Herald in 2022 and has previously worked at Stuff in Auckland and the Otago Daily Times in Dunedin.
Jared Savage is an award-winning journalist who covers crime and justice issues, with a particular interest in organised crime. He joined the Herald in 2006, and is the author of Gangland and Gangster’s Paradise.
How a resilient Kiwi village hopes to bounce back from a big drop in visitors.