Eli Epiha.
Photo: RNZ / Nick Monro
Epiha had already admitted the murder of Hunt and reckless driving causing injury.
Meanwhile, the accused getaway driver Natalie Bracken has been found guilty helping Epiha avoid arrest.
In the High Court at Auckland, witnesses and experts have detailed the shooting and its aftermath.
Here s how it happened:
19 June, 2020 We re being shot at.
Those were some of Matthew Hunt s final words, uttered into his police radio as he stepped out of a car.
He had just seen 10 shots fired at his colleague David Goldfinch.
The next four bullets would take the young constable s life.
This story contains some graphic detail and may be distressing to readers.
Witnesses have described hiding from gunfire, watching an officer fall and seeing an armed man calmly stroll from the fatal shooting of Constable Matthew Hunt.
Eli Epiha (pictured) is on trial at the High Court in Auckland and has admitted killing officer Matthew Hunt.
Photo: RNZ / Nick Monro
Witnesses have described hiding from gunfire, watching an officer fall and seeing an armed man calmly stroll from the fatal shooting of Constable Matthew Hunt.
Eli Epiha is on trial at the High Court in Auckland after fleeing police in Massey, crashing into a parked car and a bystander, then firing 14 shots, hitting two officers.
On June 19, 2020, a dark purple Toyota, driven by Epiha, caught the two constables’ attention and was flagged in the police national intelligence system. The pair had been on road policing duties. Lights and sirens were activated, but as Epiha attempted to evade the officers, he lost control and crashed into another car, injuring a member of the public on Reynella Dr. As an unarmed Goldfinch exited the police car to approach the crash scene, Epiha opened fire, shooting at him 10 times, Crown prosecutor Alysha McClintock previously said.
RYAN ANDERSON/Stuff
Eli Epiha denies attempting to murder Constable David Goldfinch. After Hunt radioed for help: We re being shot at”, he took only four steps out of his vehicle before he was shot four times in the back.
Stuff
The scene of the fatal shooting of Constable Matthew Hunt in June 2020. Inset, left to right: Eli Bob Sauni Epiha, Natalie Bracken, Constable Matthew Hunt. On June 19, 2020, a dark purple Toyota, driven by Epiha, caught the two constables’ attention and was flagged in the police national intelligence system. The incident unfolded after Epiha, who was driving a Toyota and trying to evade the two officers, crashed into another car in the West Auckland suburb of Massey. The crash injured a member of the public, who had been loading items into the car at the time. As an unarmed Goldfinch exited the police car to approach the crash scene, Epiha opened fire, shooting at him 10 times, Crown prosecutor Alysha McClintock previously said.