File Photo Reports of shots being fired and the ramming of a police car just off Auckland’s Karangahape Rd have provoked further concern about the safety of the strip, which hosts the majority of the city’s remaining gay venues. Police were called to K’ Rd around 8.45pm yesterday after “a call reporting people fighting and gun shots fired in a side street off Karangahape Road”. Police say the caller said the person with the gun was leaving in a car. Officers spotted the car and tried to stop it. “The fleeing car rammed the police car and was chased by police onto the northbound lanes of the Harbour Bridge,” Auckland Central Police say in a statement. “Near the top of the bridge the car crashed, and the occupant fled on foot on the bridge.” The driver was chased and arrested by police – and a revolver was found on the front seat of the vehicle. No one was injured in the earlier violence, the ramming of the police car, or the eventual crash. While there has been no suggestion the incident was in any way gay-related, it has caused concern due to the number of lgbti people who frequent K’ Rd. Violence and crime in and around the Auckland night time hot-spot is far from uncommon, and there are a number of cases of lgbti people have been assaulted – some targeted due to their sexuality, others attacked randomly. Just over a week ago Family Downunder’s DJ Wanda was threatened with a crowbar and robbed while walking home from work in the early hours. The K’ Rd Safety Group will discuss last night’s events and other recent cases at a meeting this week. It’s hoping to set up some type of community patrol or safety ambassador system.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Monday, 26th January 2015 - 12:07pm