The Big Read: Mystifying end in a city park

Monday, 3 August 2015 - 7:42am National News The body of the man fatally shot by Police in Myers Park at about 7.45pm last night was removed from the scene in the early hours of this morning a

Growing up poor in Slovakia, David Cerven saw kickboxing as a career to support his struggling family.

He was just 11 when his father died, leaving solo mum Maria Cervenova to raise two young sons in the small town of Dolny Kubin, but soon after started winning fights in junior competitions.

As a teenager, Cerven dreamed of living in America and asked for potential host families to contact him on a website forum in 2011.

His mother, who works with special needs children, couldn't afford to send him overseas on an exchange programme but Cerven moved to Canada during the summer months of 2012 after finishing high-school in Slovakia.

There, he lived with Renata Marko and her husband in Vancouver.

"He was well brought up, very helpful, very human. Everybody liked him."

His command of the English language was a "great source of amusement" when he got his words and sentences mixed up, said Mrs Marko, and Cerven loved playing with her two chihuahuas.

Kickboxing allowed Cerven to quickly make friends in the Vancouver, a city much larger than his hometown with a population of just 19,000.

Yousuf Moghni trained at the same fighting school as Cerven, who was soon meeting with his fellow kickboxer and his then girlfriend Victoria Safronova every day.

The trio spent most of the summer having barbeque meals at the beach, or cooking dinner at home.

Speaking from Vancouver, they said Cerven was kind, shy and funny - and loved his mother.

"He enjoyed every second of his life...he became our family member very soon and we couldn't imagine a day spent without him anymore," said Ms Safronova.

"He didn't have a lot of money, but he was such a nice guy, he would never ask for anything...It was a very happy time for him."

Cerven trained twice a day and the friends enjoyed watching the Ultimate Fighting Championship on television.

"We were always joking that in two or three years we will turn on the TV and see David there, fighting for the championship," said Ms Safronova.

But his visa expired and Cerven was forced to return home to Slovakia after three months.

Another friend from Vancouver, Tyler Bowles, visited him there and watched him fight.

"He was an incredible host and very welcoming. He was genuinely excited to see me ringside for his fight and very excited to show me his city," said Mr Bowles.

"He was one of the most genuine, most enthusiastic and most compassionate people I have ever met. He truly would never hurt a fly outside that ring."

But during his time at home, where he volunteered to train younger fighters for free, Cerven suffered a serious knee injury in 2014 which ended any potential career as a professional.

The athletic young man was reduced to walking with a limp, which Mr Bowles said was devastating for his friend.

David Cerven in Vancouver, 2012.

"It was his passion and he did it with pride and honour ... For him to not be able to practise the sport he loved would have been a terrible setback for him."

Despite this, Cerven had found love with his girlfriend Eva and the couple were excited about moving to New Zealand this year in pursuit of better opportunities.

He arrived in Auckland on March 20 on a 12 month working visa and soon found employment as an apprentice roofer.

"He was a hard worker - he came to the company with no experience and got given labouring work. It was a tough job but didn't complain," said a waterproofer who worked alongside Cerven for several weeks.

"He had a humourous side and a strong sense of camaraderie...even though he wasn't that good at speaking English, he certainly tried his best - he could talk the hind legs off a donkey."

Cerven explained his limp - and two scars around his kneecap - to colleagues as a bullet wound suffered in Iraq, where he claimed to be a sniper in the United States army.

He was also desperate to repay a bank loan he claimed his mother had borrowed to pay for the surgery.

That claim doesn't fit with what Mrs Marko told the Herald - that the only time Cerven had been to the US was a day's shopping in Seattle. She believed he had taken out a large loan, but not for knee surgery.

When the waterproofer worked alongside Cerven, the pair spoke about his poverty-stricken life in Slovakia.

"He had a tough upbringing - his way out was fighting."

Another colleague, who also asked to remain anonymous, socialised regularly with Cerven and took him a Blues match at Eden Park in June.

"It was his first time at a rugby game. He enjoyed it but I think he enjoyed socialising with us more."

Both friends said Cerven mentioned plans of becoming a soldier again, so he could pay off the loan, and that the young man had mentioned the likelihood of being killed in action.

"That was part of his long-term plan. We tried to talk him out of it."

The waterproofer said Cerven resigned abruptly several weeks ago after having some relationship problems with his girlfriend.

Despite the upheaval, he was shocked to hear Cerven was a suspect in three armed robberies on Auckland's North Shore.

"He had seen a lot of pain and suffering, but he was a good person, he knew right from wrong."

The first was on a Sunday night, the week before the fatal shooting, when he allegedly held up the Harbour City liquor store in Glenfield.

Duty manager Jung Kun Ahn said the robber spoke with a "Russian" accent and appeared calm as he demanded cash with a large knife.

"It seemed like he had done this before."

A few days later, police suspect Cerven struck again at the Thirsty Liquor store.

"I opened the till slowly, hoping for someone to come in as it is usually a busy time," owner Deborah Wang said.

"But I think I was too slow so he started to grab the cash himself."

He ran off with about $400.

But it was not until Saturday night when Cerven allegedly robbed a dairy in East Coast Rd that detectives from the Waitemata CIB found a clue to his identity.

Cerven had "left evidence" at the scene and police put out a press release the following day, publishing his name and image in the hope that someone would recognise him.

A little over six hours later, he gave himself up. Cerven called 111 at 7.23pm on Sunday to say he was in Myers Park and wanted by police for the aggravated robbery.

Some have speculated that Cerven had a death wish, that he wanted to be shot by police in a "suicide by cop" scenario.

But all Superintendent Richard Chambers, Auckland's top cop, would say is Cerven insisted that police come to the park, rather than walk a few hundred metres to the nearest police station.

"When he was located he told the officers who engaged with him verbally from a distance that he was armed," said Mr Chambers at a press conference on Monday morning.

"Consequently, unarmed staff retreated and requested armed officers to attend."

Police have not confirmed whether a weapon was found, or how many rounds were fired by the pair.

Witnesses have described hearing as many as five gunshots, possibly more.

The entire episode was recorded on CCTV and the tapes will be the key evidence for three inquiries into his death: two conducted by the police - homicide and internal - and a third by the Independent Police Conduct Authority.

Auckland barrister Todd Simmonds is acting for the officers who are understood to have confronted Cerven at the fatal shooting, but declined to make any comment when contacted.

He also represented the two officers who accidentally shot and killed Halatau Naitoko, an innocent bystander, during a shootout with P-crazed gunman Stephen Hohepa McDonald on a motorway in 2009.

In his first high-profile case since he took charge of Auckland City district, Mr Chambers said Operation Delaware investigators were working hard to find witnesses to the tragedy.

"However, it will be some time before we will be in a position to discuss what answers our inquiries may have provided to the myriad questions."

But those lack of answers is frustrating for his friends and family in Vancouver and Slovakia, who can't fathom how the vibrant young man they loved ended up dead in a city park on the other side of the world.

His mother Maria is "totally devastated", said Mrs Marko.

"His last words to his mum were that he loves her very much. She just doesn't understand what has happened...She only has two boys and now one of them is gone, and it's like her whole world has suddenly come to an end."

David Cerven. Photo / Supplied

TIMELINE

• About 2005: Cerven's father is reported to have died when Cerven was 11.
• 2006: Cerven begins to win kickboxing championships, aged around 12.
• 2011: He tries to arrange a student exchange trip to the US, but is unsuccessful due to lack of money.
• June to August 2012: Cerven spends the summer training at a mixed martial arts club in Vancouver, Canada. His friends describe him as being very happy at the time.
• September 2012: Cerven returns to Slovakia. Some time after this he sustains a knee injury, and borrows money to pay for the surgery.
• March 20, 2015: Cerven enters New Zealand on a 12-month working holiday visa. He is believed to have come from Australia.
• July 26, 27 and August 1: He is suspected to have robbed two Auckland liquor stores and a dairy.
• August 2: In the afternoon, police release Cerven's name in connection to the robberies. That evening, Cerven calls 111 to tell police he is in Myers Park. He tells unarmed officers that arrive at the scene that he is armed. Two armed officers then approach Cerven who presents what is believed to be a gun. The officers fire and fatally shoot him at about 7.45pm.
• August 3: Three investigations are launched into the death - including one by the Independent Police Conduct Authority. Police say the entire episode was caught on CCTV cameras.
• August 4: Police execute a search warrant on Cerven's Queen St address. Blessing ceremony, attended by senior police and kaumatua, held at Myers Park.