Police say the fatal shooting of Kaoss Price was "incredibly traumatic" for the officers involved, but remain tight-lipped over why he was shot aside from revealing he rammed a police vehicle on Saturday.
In the first police media conference since the fatal incident, Assistant Commissioner Sandra Venables said the 22-year-old's death was "a tragic outcome".
"This is an incredibly difficult time for Mr Price's whanau who are grieving the loss of a loved one," she said on Monday.
It all unfolded on State Highway 3 heading from New Plymouth to Waitara at 9:30pm on Easter Saturday.
Venables said officers pulled over an associate of Price, before Price himself drove past, turned around and rammed the police car.
"It was incredibly traumatic for the officers involved," said Venables.
However, just what happened after the police car was rammed remains unclear.
"The circumstances beyond that are the subject of an ongoing investigation, with a number of witness statements still to be taken."
The officers involved have yet to provide statements either.
In the 10-minute media conference, Vanables described the investigation as a "dynamic situation" with a "large scene".
Venables wouldn't answer any further questions, including whether Price was carrying a weapon himself, how many officers were involved and why it's taken more than 36 hours to release any information.
Price was known to police with a long history of offending. He had been described in court as a "one-man crime wave".
Price's family didn't want to speak to Newshub, but many have taken to Facebook to say he will be missed.
The cordon around the scene will remain in place on Monday night with a steady flow of officers in and out.
Many investigations continue, to establish just what happened and whether police were justified in taking the life of Price.
