Auckland shooting: two people killed hours before the Women's world cup

At least two people and an armed attacker have been killed, with five others wounded during a shooting in Auckland, New Zealand. 

The attack took place on Thursday, 20 July, just hours before the opening match of the FIFA Women's World Cup. 

The gunman, who was armed with a pump-action shotgun when he arrived at a construction site on Queen Street, died after the incident at 07:22 (19:22 GMT) on a construction site in the central business district.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said: “The victims went to work this morning, as they will do any other morning, but they will not be coming home tonight. 

“Their families, their loved ones will be feeling that, as the whole country will be feeling that."

During a televised media briefing, Hipkins said of the attack: "There was no identified political or ideological motivation for the shooting and therefore no national security risk." 

There would be no change to New Zealand's security threat level although there would be an increased police presence in the city, he said.

The attack was not seen as an act of terrorism.

"Obviously we would prefer it not to have started in this way," Hipkins told journalists.

"It will be acknowledged what happened today at the opening ceremony. And I will be going, it is safe to go and we continue to encourage the whole community to get behind this," he said.

Hipkins thanked "the brave men and women of the New Zealand police who ran into the gunfire, straight into harm's way, in order to save the lives of others".

"These kinds of situations move fast and the actions of those who risk their lives to save others are nothing short of heroic".

According to the New Zealand Herald, the gunman has been identified as 24-year-old Matu Tangi Matua Reid, who was on home detention for domestic violence and had approval to travel to the building site. 

After reaching the upper levels of the building, the attacker contained himself within an elevator shaft and fired more shots before being found dead a short time later.

"The individual is known for primarily family violence history. There is nothing to suggest that he has presented a higher-level risk than was indicated by that history," Coster said.

According to Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown, all Fifa personnel and football teams are safe and have been accounted for. Earlier, he had warned people to stay home and avoid travelling into the city.

"I can't remember anything like this ever happening in our beautiful city. This morning's events have been tragic and distressing for all Aucklanders, as this is not something that we are used to," Brown wrote on Twitter.

New Zealand police said they heard reports of a person discharging a firearm inside the construction site, and the gunman moved through the building and continued to fire.

The man then went into a lift shaft and police attempted to engage with him.

Further shots were fired by the man and he was found dead a short time later, police said.

Following the shooting there was a large armed police presence in the central business district not far from the waterfront and the fan park.

Hipkins has announced that a full review will be launched into whether there were red flags. He said the police will investigate fully what happened here, and they will be able to provide the answers to the questions that we all have, in time”.

Those questions included, “what triggered this terrible sequence of events”, where the shooter got the gun and whether there were any early signals, and that Corrections will do a review into the alleged offender's management.