Police launch homicide investigation after woman run down at busy Hamilton intersection
Friday, 16 May 2025
Police have launched a homicide probe after a woman was run down at a major Hamilton intersection.
The incident happened near the intersection of Ōhaupō Rd and Kahikatea Drive in Melville, about 9.30am on Thursday.
The 30-year-old woman died after a vehicle drove into the power pole she was standing next to, Detective Inspector Matt Cranshaw said in a statement.
The road was closed for much of the day. It was open again by 3.40pm, NZ Transport Agency said.
“Police extend their thoughts to whānau and friends of the deceased at this difficult time,” Cranshaw said.
Senior Sergeant Leo Belay, who was at the scene, said nobody in either of two vehicles seen near the power pole had suffered any injuries.
It was initially believed both vehicles had been involved, however further inquires had determined only one was.
“The circumstances of what happened are still under investigation, and we have several people who are assisting us with our inquiries,” he said.
There had been many witnesses to the incident, and CCTV footage was being examined.
“We want to thank members of the public who went to the aid of the person who was injured immediately, as well as the staff who responded from the nearby hospital,” Belay said.
People with information about the crash or those involved are asked to contact police at 105.police.govt.nz, clicking “Update Report” or by calling 105 and quoting the reference number 250515/6763.
Information can also be provided anonymously to Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.
A staff member at a nearby store called The Herbal Shop, who asked not to be named, said she had heard from a passer by that there had been “a road rage incident of some kind” further north on Kahikatea Drive shortly before the crash at the intersection.
She did not have enough information to say whether the two incidents were in any way connected.
Others in the store said they saw the male driver of a small black car at the scene rendering first aid to the person who had been struck.
Other staff at a block of shops on the corner of the intersection said they were either not at work, or were completely unaware of the crash until well afterwards.
Nearby resident Jacob Rejith said he had been asleep at the time of the crash but was awoken by the sound of a car alarm. He did not realise that a crash had happened close by.
A manager at the nearby Braemar Hospital, who declined to give her name, said nobody at the hospital at the time saw or knew anything about the crash.