In retrospect, another homicide in Pakuranga Heights on August 24 brings the number of cases in Auckland to five in a month. Tuipuluto Vi was shot dead in his mail container as he left his home.

Auckland Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson said the figures were concerning, “but I think we have to recognise that the police are managing the situation in all cases”.

Simpson said: “My broader message to Aucklanders is that police tell us this particular event (in Grey Lynn), like others, is isolated between people (who already know each other).

“It’s not like a random shooter is shooting people he doesn’t know.”

Simpson called the Grey Lynn incident a “horrifying display of violence” and said she had compassion for the town’s residents. She urged anyone who could help the police investigation to contact them.

“Let’s be honest, I can understand that Aucklanders are a little bit worried. I just want to give them confidence, the police are telling them to stay calm. They’re asking Aucklanders to stay calm.”

University of Auckland criminologist Dr Ronald Kramer also spoke about the reality of homicide cases, saying victims and perpetrators usually know each other and incidents are rare.

“Most murders are people who get angry and lose their minds a little bit. There’s something unpredictable about these kinds of events. It’s probably not a pattern that’s going to repeat itself,” Kramer said.

“When these kinds of things happen, they draw attention to them and cause concern. But in reality, I wouldn’t be afraid of that.

“It’s just statistically very unlikely that someone would be murdered randomly. What’s perhaps more disturbing to people is that there’s no way to control that kind of phenomenon.”

The perpetrators in two of the recent cases, Pakuranga Heights and Grey Lynn, are still awaiting trial. One person has been arrested and charged with murder over the Blockhouse Bay incident, two have been arrested over the Mt Wellington incident and one has been arrested over the Onehunga incident.

All those arrested have made their first court appearances. All have been granted name suppression and are due to appear in the High Court in Auckland on September 18.

Elsewhere in the country, five other homicide investigations have been opened in the past month.

Other cases include an eight-year-old boy killed in the Hamilton suburb of Bader on September 1, a 60-year-old man who died after a domestic violence incident in Pātea on August 24, and two people found dead in Tūrangi on August 15.

A man was found seriously injured on the side of a state highway in Northland on August 1 and later died at the scene, with a 50-year-old man charged with murder.

And this morning, police launched a homicide investigation following the discovery of a woman’s body on a remote part of the Northland coast on August 2.

Police Minister Mark Mitchell acknowledged the number of recent homicides.

“My immediate objective has been to ensure that guarantees are provided to the communities affected by these events.

“It underlines the importance of the major public safety agenda this government is delivering, with tougher laws to seize illegal firearms, more police powers to control violent gangs, more capacity in our prison system to remove risks to the community and tougher sentencing laws to ensure sentences reflect the seriousness of the offence.

“I would like to highlight the work of our police who, through rapid and thorough investigations, solved these cases and made several arrests.

“The police will continue their outstanding work targeting violent gangs and offenders who believe themselves to be above the law and who can bring violence into our communities.”

Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based journalist covering current affairs. He joined Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.

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