An East Auckland father of three killed in a hit-and-run in a carpark outside a karaoke bar was out celebrating his wife’s birthday.

The recent detailed analysis of DNA collected from a shawl, allegedly of one of Jack the Ripper's first victims, appears to carry a fundamental maths error.

The 41-year-old man who died after being hit by a vehicle outside an east Auckland Karaoke bar on Saturday has been named by police.

A man was killed after a karaoke bar argument over a woman turned vicious in the early hours of yesterday.

The prime suspect in the "Stop-Go" slaying of George Taiaroa has left his rural hideaway.

A man has been charged with the murder of missing Opunake man Aaron Roigard.

Two men have today pleaded guilty to manslaughter charges after an assault on a Christchurch man that saw him die two weeks later of serious burn injuries.

Police will not say how many Kiwi victims of sex offending entertainer Rolf Harris have come forward, but are encouraging any others to contact them.

The police officer accused of planting a cartridge case in the Crewe double-murder inquiry went to his grave denying he fitted up Arthur Allan Thomas.

Daughter of a New Zealand man who died after an assault in Australia last month has made an emotional plea for information into his death.

Husband of mother left with severe head injuries after she tried to stop a bag snatch says: "She is very sore and extremely tired."

Hero mum-of-six Lucy Knight has asked about the welfare of her youngest children – her first brief sentences since undergoing brain surgery after a shocking daylight attack last week.

The husband of Lucy Knight, the woman seriously hurt after intervening in an attempted bag snatch, says the response from the public has been mind-boggling.

Lucy Knight's family have spoken about her progress in hospital - and their gratitude to the public, who have donated more than $160,000 to help her recovery.

A 17-year-old Manurewa youth charged over an attack on an Auckland mother of six who intervened in an alleged street robbery will seek bail tomorrow.

A 17-year-old man has been arrested and charged over the attack on good samaritan Lucy Knight yesterday afternoon.

A Kaitaia hostel owner has had fresh charges laid against him since his appearance in court.

"Another kick in the teeth for the family", is how the father of teenager William Lewis has described a parole hearing for his son's killer.

New charges, including a second attempted murder count, have today been laid against alleged Ashburton Work and Income double killer Russell John Tully.

A New Zealand woman and her British boyfriend who were shot dead on a beach in Libya in January were in the "wrong place at the wrong time", a British coroner says.

Two men involved in a fight outside a children's basketball game are blaming each other for the altercation - and police say witnesses will be key to establishing who the instigator was.

At what point paradise becomes lost depends on whom you speak to.

An Auckland grandmother who beat a 77-year-old man unconscious before setting him on fire will spend at least the next 15 years in prison.

A teenager who participated in a brutal, premeditated, armed hold-up has had a potentially lengthy prison term slashed because of his assistance to police.

A 13-year-old charged with the murder of a West Auckland shopkeeper faces a wait to find out whether he will get bail.

Police are continuing to call for more information relating to a string of suspected indecent assaults allegedly carried out by Northland lodge owner Michael Harris.