Canadian woman ‘shocked and distressed’ after murder of fiance in New Zealand

Pitkethley says the suspect fired a number of shots into the van, injuring the Australian tourist. The woman managed to escape and run away, and she called police.

Police did not immediately identify the victim, but New Zealand media report he was 33-year-old Sean McKinnon and the woman who escaped was his 32-year-old Canadian fiance.

“We are supporting the female victim, who is understandably very shocked and distressed,” Pitkethley told a news conference.

A statement from Counties Manukau Health in Auckland said the organization is providing support to one of its staff members, a midwife, who was involved in the “tragic incident.”

Pitkethley said after the initial shooting, the suspect stole the van and drove away with the injured tourist still inside.

The terrain where the vehicle was stolen is “quite rough,” he said, and police are still trying to determine whether the Canadian woman sustained any injuries in her escape.

Police found the vehicle at 8 a.m. about 75 kilometres away. It wasn’t immediately clear if the man had died from the wounds he received in the initial attack or had been subject to further violence.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that McKinnon grew up in the town of Warrnambool, Australia, about 250 kilometres southwest of Melbourne, and that friends remembered him as a talented musician who liked to surf big waves.

Wayne Such told the newspaper that McKinnon was a “genuine, gentle man with a heart of gold.”

— with files from The Associated Press

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

Canadian woman ‘shocked and distressed’ after murder of fiance in New Zealand

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