A witness to the shooting that critically injured two in Auckland on New Year's Day says she saw three or four people running away down alleyways afterwards.
Neither she nor her daughter saw their faces. But her daughter said she heard swearing and the "n" word before the sedan the victims were in hit a van.
Both Sonya Laupola and her mother Agnes Ahmann were startled from their sleep but Laupola was up first to watch the horrific events of New Year's morning unfold.
"I saw the car go into the van. I was already watching," Laupola said.
What had just happened slowly dawned on her.
"I just thought like, 'Oh, they had a bad day, like they just crashed' but when I realised they weren't backing out, I was like, 'Oh no,'" Laupola said.
On Monday, Newshub reported a man had shouted "the f**k I say" then the "n" word, which Laupola confirms.
"Yes, he started swearing and then he called that guy the 'n' word and that's when I heard the shot," Laupola said.
Laupola's mother Ahmann woke soon after.
"A loud bang woke me up but I just thought it was fireworks," Ahmann told Newshub.
"But then I heard voices outside, [I] could hear people running, [I] heard the, 'Get him, get him' so I took a peek out the window and then I saw a vehicle in the middle of the road," she recalled.
The vehicle's lights were on but it wasn't moving, and Ahmann went to check on the children. Within minutes armed police and ambulances arrived, and a body was pulled from the car.
"From what I could see there were about three or four people running," Ahmann said.
It's the first time Newshub has heard there may have been more than one person fleeing the scene.
"I saw one run into the alleyway a couple of others run towards that direction into the other alleyway," Ahmann said.
The first alleyway is a mere 10m from the crash; the other is about 30m.
Ahmann and Laupola said they've spent a couple of tough days processing what happened.
"On the night it was pretty shocking," Laupola said.
"I've just got my two younger ones staying at my parents at the moment," Ahmann added.
Neither woman saw faces, just figures in the night. They wouldn't be able to recognise anyone again but, in any case, they don't believe whoever carried out the attack is local.
"I like this neighbourhood, this stuff doesn't happen on our street, so yeah it was a bit scary," Ahmann said.
The cordon was removed on Monday night after the sedan was towed away. The two men inside the vehicle who were taken to hospital with gunshot wounds remain in critical condition and the police said there isn't thought to be an ongoing risk to the community.
Officers have spoken to multiple people though no arrests have been made, police said.
