Media statements from victims of New Lynn terror attack
Detective Superintendent Tim Anderson, New Zealand Police:
Following the terrorist attack in New Lynn, Auckland earlier this month, Police have been working closely with all victims and those involved to ensure they are well supported following what was an incredibly traumatic incident for them.
Police have identified
and located an eighth victim late last week and
have
recorded his statement. He was not injured but was
tackled by the offender
when he bravely intervened in
an attempt to stop the terrorist attacking a
woman. He
applied first aid to that victim before leaving to find his
partner
and get to safety.
All victims have been
assigned a Police family liaison officer who
are
ensuring they are receiving the welfare and support
they need as they
continue to recover. Five are at home
recovering. Three remain in Auckland
Hospital on the
wards in a stable condition.
Police have been working
with the victims to ensure they have the opportunity
to
speak with media and tell their story if they wish to. One
of the victims,
Rodney Khan, has shared his story with
one media outlet and has informed
Police that while
happy to be identified, he does not wish to do any
further
media interviews and has requested
privacy.
Police would like to take this opportunity to
acknowledge Rodney’s actions
on that day. A review of
CCTV has shown that without hesitation Rodney
ran
straight toward danger when he heard members of the
public in distress, and
he distracted the terrorist who
then turned on him. We have no doubt that
Rodney’s
actions on that day prevented further injury to others and
while
he is very humble about what he did, his actions
were nothing short of
heroic. Rodney is at home
recovering from a dislocated shoulder and being
well
supported by family and friends.
Five victims have
asked Police to provide the below statements on
their
behalf but four of them have asked that no
details be released that would
identify them. All the
victims have said at this point they do not wish
to
speak with media and have asked that media do not
contact them and allow them
privacy. Should victims and
their families change their position over time,
we will
advise media.
Statements
Statement from victim Susan Maddren recovering at home:
I would like to
acknowledge and thank all the people that were involved
in
supporting myself and the other victims in the
terrorist attack at LynnMall
two weeks ago. Your
bravery and courage is commendable.
A special mention
to the lady outside Countdown who tried to stop
the
bleeding from my hip and to the bus driver who
kindly allowed me to enter her
bus, where I felt safe
and supported until the ambulance arrived.
I would
like to thank the ambulance staff and all the doctors and
nurses at
Auckland hospital for the wonderful care I
received. I will never forget
your genuine kindness and
your willingness to go the extra mile to ensure
my
every need was met. Your ability to show both skills
and compassion is a rare
combination and one of which
you can all be immensely proud.
My gratefulness to the
Police cannot be under estimated. Their
professionalism
and attention to detail was outstanding. At the time
of
the attacks they not only acted quickly to prevent
others getting hurt, but
provided ongoing support to my
husband, our four children and to myself. I
would also
like to acknowledge and thank the support we are
currently
receiving from Victim Support.
My heart
goes out to the other victims and their families. Being a
victim
myself, I understand what they are going through
and they are always in my
thoughts.
To our
friends, family, community, and all New Zealanders
everywhere who have
offered their support, your
kindness is greatly appreciated. In particular
a
special thank you to my children’s schools who have
gone above and beyond
to show their love and support to
us as a family. I know this is who we are
as a country
and what we do best, and I will be forever grateful to you
all.
Statement from family of victim recovering in Auckland Hospital:
Our family would like to offer our
sincere thanks and praise to the following
people and
organisations:
To all the courageous people who came
to the aid of the victims of the
attack, and all of the
ambulance staff who were involved.
We acknowledge and
commend your bravery and would like you to know
and
understand that your actions have been the
difference between life or death,
for our loved one in
particular.
Our gratitude is endless.
To all of
the Police staff involved, in particular the Tactical Team
who shot
and killed the offender preventing more people
being attacked we acknowledge
and commend your bravery.
And also to all of the Police staff who are
committed
to providing ongoing support for our family.
To all
the hospital staff involved, in particular the surgeons and
nursing
staff, for their initial and ongoing service to
the victims of the attack as
they recover, both
physically and psychologically.
Our family would also
like to acknowledge and send love to the
family,
friends and loved ones of all the victims of
the attack, and the family
friends and loved ones of
all of the people present at the time it
took
place.
And finally, we would like to
acknowledge our mighty New Zealand nation for
your
ongoing support and love during this extremely challenging
time.
We will be forever grateful.
Statement from brother of victim still recovering Auckland Hospital:
On the day of the attack, I was informed of
what had happened to my brother
so I went to the
hospital and was told that he was in surgery and would
be
placed in an induced coma for possibly 48
hours.
I felt that he was in good hands, so I went
home and informed family. I
also talked with Victim
Support and Police that evening and saw some of
the
news reports about the attack. I felt fearful for
those that had been
injured and grief, especially for
my brother in not knowing what the outcome
for him
would be.
My family, my partner’s family and
extended family and friends were very
supportive –
everyone’s thoughts were with the injured and my
brother
received love and prayers from all
directions.
I felt for the Police and in particular
for the officers who had to shoot the
attacker but
believe it was the best outcome.
Even though the Prime
Minister had said that in her opinion his name
should
not be made public, on Saturday morning the
attacker’s name was announced
which made me angry
with lots of emotions going on, but I later came
around
and feel that he was an unfortunate person who
somehow took the path he did
and suffered the
consequences in a country where that ideology could
not
work.
Over the next few days my brother
improved with astounding speed and it was
so pleasing
to see the improvements in him each day leading to him being
able
to walk around with assistance only four days
after his ordeal. He had been
feeling a bit sorry for
himself not remembering all that happened to him on
the
Friday the attack occurred.
However, a few days later,
he gave me a huge smile when I arrived, and I knew
that
he would soon be his old self again (only family and friends
know what I
mean). He has his voice back and we will
not be able to stop him from talking
about the things
he is passionate about. We love him so much.
Our
brother had a small setback with his breathing, but it has
been sorted
and he is now improving again. He has a bit
of a journey to go yet before
he is back to his old
self and I have talked with several people such as
ACC,
special support, Police and hospital staff who
will make sure my brother has
the right support for the
best outcome.
This country has gone through so much
drama in the last couple of years with
global warming,
natural disasters, terrorism, Covid19 etc that I
don’t
believe any other government could have done a
better job than ours today and
thanks to them, the
Police, health workers & front line workers. New
Zealand
is still the best country in the world.
I
have talked with so many wonderful people in the last few
days including my
brother, family, friends, Idea
Services, Polo and Michelle, and my partner.
Be kind and smile, my brother’s healing journey continues.
I
would like to thank the people at the scene in Lynn Mall who
stepped up and
possibly saved lives with their quick
responses. I would also like to thank
the Police who
shut it down so quickly and for their follow up in
supporting
my brother and myself. The ambulance
paramedics and the hospital staff –
the surgeons,
doctors and nurses that have interacted and supported
our
family.
Statement from victim recovering from home.
It is with much gratitude we wish to thank the
following people for their
love, care and support,
Detectives Brendon Pearson, Brett Roberts and
our
family liaison officer, Victim Support, staff at
Green Bay Medical Center,
ACC, Pastor's Simon and
Monique Radford and the caring family at
Laingholm
Baptist Church, also our thoughtful
neighbours and our wonderful supportive
loving family.
Most of all we give Honor and Praise to our Lord and
Saviour,
The Lord Jesus Christ, knowing that without
Him we may not be here today and
we continue to pray in
Jesus name for all those who have been affected
through
this terrorist attack, Psalm34v4-8
Statement from victim recovering at home:
I’d like to sincerely
thank everyone who helped me during and after
the
attack on Friday 3rd September. I’d like to
personally thank Countdown
staff, police, ambulance
staff, paramedics, hospital nurses, doctors,
admin
staff, radiologists, surgeons, anaesthetists and
Victim Support. I’m truly
overwhelmed by your
professional assistance, care and kindness.
Thank you to the public for their expressions of kindness and care.
I’d like to pass on my condolences and love to
the other survivors. Please
know that you are all in my
thoughts and prayers.
This was a horrific experience
and I’m incredibly grateful to God for
saving my, and
the other survivors’ lives. I am now at home
recovering.