‘In the prime of his life’: Parents of Courtenay Place victim pay tribute to only child

Wednesday, 9 October 2024

Luke Smith’s parents came to New Zealand for a better life. They hoped their 21-year-old son would be safer here than in South Africa, and he could set up a life of his own, perhaps even working as a tradie.

But, in the early hours of Sunday morning, those hopes came crashing down when Luke became the victim of an alleged assault near a bus stop by the abandoned Reading Cinema complex on Courtenay Place.

Luke was rushed to Wellington Hospital, but was soon declared brain dead and his parents were left to make the devastating decision to turn off his life support.

Police have since launched a homicide investigation into Luke’s death, as the spotlight turns to the central Wellington hospitality hub that has fast become a hotspot for crime.

‘We never got to say goodbye’

Speaking exclusively to The Post, Luke’s parents ‒ Brian and Natasha Smith ‒ described him as a much longed for only child who “was the joy of our lives”.

“He was our whole life. He was a young, energetic 21-year-old who was full of life and lived life to the fullest,” Brian said.

On Saturday night, Luke had been out clubbing with a friend. He messaged his mum to say he was going to come home about 10pm ‒ but his parents never heard from him again.

“We never got to say goodbye. His friend called us to tell us what had happened, and that Luke was being taken to hospital in an ambulance escorted by police.

“He was unconscious and put on life support straight away. The hospital phoned us and told us that we must come immediately.”

For the Smiths, it was a shock to realise how well loved Luke had become in his short time in Aotearoa.

“All these guys came and gave their condolences, and that’s when we met some of his friends for the first time.

“We were quite surprised how big an impact he had had here and all of them were just speaking glowingly about him. He was well loved by all who came into contact with him.”

Brian and Natasha emigrated to New Zealand from Cape Town earlier this year, choosing to settle in sleepy Upper Hutt. Luke joined his parents on a visitor’s visa, and was due to return home on November 10.

“Now he’ll be leaving on his back. It should be the kids who bury their parents, not vice versa. But now we must go and bury him.”

Luke is due to undergo an autopsy on Wednesday, after which his parents are planning to return to South Africa for his funeral.

The Smith whānau had moved to New Zealand in the hopes of giving Luke a more safe and settled life, where he could train to be a plumber or electrician.

“We never thought something like this would happen here. My wife wants to go back home because she thought New Zealand was a safe country where you don’t hear about things like this, but now we are facing it.

“For myself, I still think New Zealand is still a good place for us, but this is very hard,” Brian said.

Luke loved sports, and in particular soccer (“he was a die-hard Manchester United fan” ) and anything to do with fast cars. He loved movies, games and socialising.

“He was a respectful young man who was never rude to others and respected others, irrespective of their different views. His life was cut short while he was still in the prime of his life and we are gutted.”

Luke’s best friend added that he was “the most kind hearted person you could ever meet”.

“He was charismatic, funny, he loved life and loved interacting with different people. He always made sure the people around him were taken care of,” Jada ‒ who did not want to give his surname ‒ told The Post.

Investigators continuing to ‘comb through evidence’

On Tuesday afternoon, police announced that they’d launched a homicide investigation into Luke’s death.

Detective Senior Sergeant Tim Leitch from the Wellington Criminal Investigations Branch said investigators continue to work to determine exactly what happened on Sunday.

“Investigators are continuing to comb through evidence, and we need to speak with anyone who saw the incident and has yet to contact us,” Leitch said.

Leitch was particularly keen to hear from two women who had been sitting at a bus stop nearby and likely witnessed the incident.

“A number of others came to the assistance of Luke after the assault, and we would like to speak to these people also and obtain any video and still images people may have of the incident,” he said.

A 29-year-old man has been arrested in relation to the incident, and charged with wounding with reckless disregard for the safety of the victim.

He appeared in Wellington District Court on Monday and is due to reappear in court on October 21, with further charges possible. Judge Andy Nicholls granted him bail and suppressed his name.

Anyone with information about the alleged assault is asked to come forward. Information can be provided to police online or by calling 105 and using the reference number 241006/5414. Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

‘More needs to be done to improve safety in our city’

The alleged attack of Luke happened outside the abandoned Reading Cinema Complex on Courtenay Place, the capital’s notorious entertainment strip that has become known as a hotspot for crime.

Three years on from the the launch of the $7.7 million Pōneke Promise to address safety in the central city, police data shows year-on-year reported crime increases around the Golden Mile.

In July, 10 new community beat officers were deployed to Wellington, with their priority being to improve the safety of the central city.

While local businesses have described the initiative as making a “huge difference” to retail crime, Wellington mayor Tory Whanau said Luke’s death showed that “more needs to be done to improve safety in our city”.

“In the recent Long Term Plan Budget, we provided a $5 million boost to city safety and tasked Council staff with developing a new city safety plan, working alongside other agencies like police, health, housing and community organisations, to address crime, anti-social behaviour and its root causes,” Whanau said.

Owner of nearby businesses El Barrio and Vinyl Greig Wilson said bars nearby would now be looking to the council and police to help with keeping Courtenay Place safe at night.

“We’re all devastated. There’s a sense that something like this has been coming for a while with the downturn of Courtenay Place, but we’ve got a whole raft of things in the works that we hope will improve the situation.

“We’re all mobilised and ready to do what it takes to make it safe for people to come out,” Wilson said.