Mt Albert party incident: Teen in hospital after surgery as police hunt those responsible
Six young people have been injured after an Auckland party spiralled out of control, with reports of machetes, vicious assaults and a car being driven at partygoers. Video / NZHMt Albert party incident: Teen in hospital after surgery as police hunt those responsibleA young person injured when a Mt Albert party spiralled out of control has undergone surgery, as police work to track down those responsible. Dozens of police officers, ambulance staff and firefighters rushed to the incident last night, which spread across a number of streets, with up to 100 people at the scene. Six young people were injured, amid reports of machetes, vicious assaults and a car being driven at partygoers. Some neighbours of the property on Phyllis St had small children, and one home was treated as a refuge for someone who was allegedly stabbed.
Source:New Zealand Herald
March 28, 2026 21:13 UTC
Stolen property benefits housing charity in Canterbury
Photo: NZ PoliceA local charity is to benefit from stolen kitchen items, after a North Canterbury burglar was sentenced in court. A 42-year-old man was sentenced at the Christchurch District Court last week to nine months and 14 days of home detention, Snr Sgt Walker said. "This is a great outcome and ensures that the community benefits from the recovery of stolen property." The charity aims to provide and improve housing for lower-income families through initiatives such as rent-to-buy programmes and community rentals, allocating warm, dry and safe housing based on need. "If you witness any suspicious activity around these areas, please call 111," Snr Sgt Walker said.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 28, 2026 20:16 UTC
My Net Worth: Lowry Gladwell, Airwallex New Zealand lead
Lowry Gladwell realised five or six years into his legal career that law really wasn't what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Lowry Gladwell began his career as a corporate lawyer at Bell Gully. His next job was at the ASB Bank at the height of the Global Financial Crisis' impact on New Zealand businesses. It was a very innocent country upbringing. I later went to Mahurangi College in War...
Source:Stuff
March 28, 2026 16:16 UTC
All Whites star Ryan Thomas races from Finland Fifa series loss to Te Puke wedding
New Zealand Football hadn’t planned to stage home games this month, with the Northern Hemisphere more likely, before the opportunity of the Fifa series was presented, which changed the equation. “He told me last September that this had been planned around him not having an international break and being able to come back and go to the wedding. [But] had we been in Europe or America or somewhere like we normally are, then Ryan wouldn’t have been with us. So it aligned.”It has also made for an extra special period for Thomas’ parents, who attended the match on Friday night before the nuptials on Saturday. “If she came I would have said what the hell are you doing, you got to stay at home,” laughed Thomas.
Source:New Zealand Herald
March 28, 2026 15:54 UTC
Record-holder helps revive bike race
PHOTO: SUPPLIEDAfter a five-year hiatus, the Lake Hawea Epic mountain bike race marks its triumphant return this weekend. ‘‘I think, in their eyes, I was someone that could potentially help to carry the event forward,’’ Mr Allan said. With the founders convinced that Mr Allan was the man for the job, it was important to get the landowners onside. ‘‘Luckily, they were keen for me to be the person who moved it forward,’’ Mr Allan said. ‘‘The Lake Hawea community centre is the start and the finish line, and that will be a bit of a hub.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 28, 2026 15:05 UTC
Pianist offering classical music but with twist
Belgian pianist and composer Daniel Verstappen and tour collaborator Kiwi violinist Joe Harrop. He will perform live at the Grainstore Gallery with Kiwi violinist Joe Harrop on April 2, after a scheduled performance with the Dunedin Youth Orchestra in Hanover Hall on April 1. The performance will include original compositions from his previous album, along with German composer Hans Zimmer’s score for Interstellar and Italian composer Ennio Morricone’s film music. ‘‘We are two classical musicans, but we will play a modern twist on Vivaldi or say a Toccata from Bach . He says with his own style of blending classical music with a contemporary sound he hopes to inspire young musicans to ‘‘emerge in the classical world’’ and to look at classical music in a unique way.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 28, 2026 15:05 UTC
Questions raised over drug enforcement as Cocaine use surges in NZ
Concerns are mounting over the effectiveness of drug enforcement efforts in New Zealand following a sharp rise in cocaine use and continued large-scale drug imports. The move aims to disrupt South American cartels increasingly using Pacific routes to traffic drugs into the country. The announcement comes amid new police wastewater testing data, which revealed a 98% spike in cocaine use during the final quarter of 2025. According to him, wastewater data suggests that those already using methamphetamine are doing so more frequently, as reported by Stuff. “If enforcement is working, why are more drugs flowing into the country?”, Stuff has quoted.
Source:Stuff
March 28, 2026 12:56 UTC
Mt Albert Airbnb property under fire after violent teen party chaos
The Herald was invited inside the property, which had a broken-down door and a backyard full of rubbish and wine bottles. Senior Sergeant John Nicol said police received multiple calls about a large disorder event involving young people on Phyllis St about 9.50 pm. A Phyllis St resident's car was one of many smashed in a September 2019 party. In 2019, Shu said there had only ever been single people booking and checking into his two Phyllis St properties on Booking.com. Stuff reported in 2022 that a bullet was found on an Epsom property, owned by Shu as a landlord through his property management business, ARent1.
Source:New Zealand Herald
March 28, 2026 12:37 UTC
The Crash: A first-hand account of school bus tragedy that rocked Woodford House
“I remember going up to you and talking. I used to sometimes just stop there and think about it.”***I ask Guy what he had heard about why the bus went off the road. “You know,” Guy said, “I used to get pissed off about the response to the driver, Cedric Goucher. He didn’t get out of bed that morning and plan to crash a bus. When he can, he attends the annual memorial services at Woodford House to pay his respects to everyone who was in the bus.
Source:Stuff
March 28, 2026 12:32 UTC
Diggers save dog trapped in seawall on Auckland’s Ōrewa beach with incoming tide
A dog was freed by fire and emergency crew after falling into a cavity in a seawall on Ōrewa Beach, Auckland. Photo / SuppliedA spokesman said two nearby excavators were used to help remove rocks, which freed the dog about 30 minutes after the crew arrived. Onlookers said construction workers in the area, who wore high-vis vests, assisted crews in freeing the dog. Lee said it was “really lucky” that nothing fell on to the dog when the rocks were moved. Photo / SuppliedLee said the wall hasn’t been on that part of the beach for that long, so she posted to Facebook to warn people of the risk.
Source:New Zealand Herald
March 28, 2026 12:22 UTC
Two Auckland players win $25 million Lotto Jackpot
Two Lotto players are celebrating a life-changing win after sharing a $25 million jackpot on Saturday night. The pair will each receive $12.75 million, a total that includes an additional $250,000 from Lotto First Division winnings. According to a report by Stuff, both jackpot winners are based in Auckland and purchased their tickets through the MyLotto app. Meanwhile, two other players also claimed a share of the $250,000 Lotto First Division prize. In addition to the jackpot winners, two players struck Strike Four, splitting a $400,000 prize.
Source:Stuff
March 28, 2026 12:21 UTC
Peters pledges $15m for Cathedral rebuild
Image: Frank FilmsWinston Peters has committed $15 million to completing the rebuild of Christchurch's Cathedral if New Zealand First is part of the next government. The Christ Church Cathedral in the centre of the city was extensively damaged in the February 2011 earthquake. The about $250 million rebuild project was mothballed in 2024 due to a lack of money. Peters said the project now had an affordable, common-sense plan put forward by Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Ltd and about $90 million had already been invested. Christ Church Cathedral Dean Ben Truman was delighted by Peters' announcement.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 28, 2026 12:13 UTC
Communities concerned about alcohol reforms
Photo: RNZConcerns are growing among health providers and whānau about the governments proposed alcohol reforms, with warnings they could increase harm in vulnerable communities. She said alcohol harm was not just about individual choice. Witika-Hawke pointed to the impact of alcohol harm on future generations, including FASD, a lifelong condition caused by prenatal alcohol exposure. Alcohol Healthwatch executive director Andrew Galloway told RNZ the scale of alcohol harm was significant in Aotearoa, and that the reforms appeared to remove effective protections. Galloway said the direction of the reforms contradicted other government strategies, including suicide prevention efforts that put an emphasis on reducing alcohol harm.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 28, 2026 10:06 UTC
Guest Post: How AI Can Build a Smaller, Smarter State
Not because politicians don’t want them, but because formulating a political magic pill is hard. It requires a system capable of producing outcomes that are more than just tolerable to both sides — outcomes that are genuinely better, cheaper, faster, and fairer all at once. AI is good at the routine; it struggles with judgement, nuance, and the messy edge cases where real people live. It’s easy to sketch broad ideas about a smarter state, but at some point you have to put a real proposal on the table. ACC showed we can build systems that work across ideological lines.
Source:Stuff
March 28, 2026 10:03 UTC
Slips cleared on SH25 from Coromandel to Matarangi; all roads now open, clean-up work underway with rain on radar
New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi crews worked on a slip on SH25 between Coromandel and Kūaotunu overnight. Photo / NZTASlips cleared on SH25 from Coromandel to Matarangi; all roads now open, clean-up work underway with rain on radarNew Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi crews worked on a slip on SH25 between Coromandel and Kūaotunu overnight. Photo / NZTAState Highway 25 in Coromandel has reopened after slips forced an overnight closure during severe weather. The road was the last remaining road closure on the peninsula after this week’s deluge, and was closed from Coromandel to Matarangi Rd, Kūaotunu. The highest totals were recorded in the Coromandel Ranges, where Castle Rock received 412mm of rain between Wednesday and Friday, while the Pinnacles recorded 347mm.
Source:New Zealand Herald
March 28, 2026 08:22 UTC