New Zealand Police Officer Honoured for Bravery After Waitārere Beach Triple Shooting

Constable David Cramp has received the 2026 Police Bravery Award for his swift actions during a family harm incident at Waitārere Beach in January.

What Happened

One person died and three others suffered critical injuries after being shot in the head and chest during the January 14 incident. Responding to a 111 call placed by a young girl, Constable Cramp and another officer arrived at the house and spotted a hole in a window. A distressed nine-year-old girl eventually opened the door. Without waiting for backup, the two officers entered the home and found a pistol alongside a 60-year-old man, identified as Ben Timmins, lying on the floor with a chest stab wound. Despite first aid efforts, Timmins died at the scene. Constable Cramp then performed an armed search of the house, discovering blood pools and spent shell casings. He located three seriously injured victims in different rooms: a 22-year-old man, a severely injured woman with a fractured skull, and a 17-year-old male who had also been shot.

Emergency Response

Utilising his prior military experience in battlefield trauma management, Constable Cramp treated the victims while facing potential ongoing danger. One man suffered a near-fatal facial gunshot wound, while another sustained chest, arm, and abdomen wounds with broken ribs, lung damage, and trauma to his spleen and kidneys. Cramp applied chest seals using plastic bandage packaging to help save the wounded man. The Police Association credited his decisive leadership and actions with directly preventing the deaths of the three surviving victims.

Context

Family harm incidents involving firearms pose extreme risks to both responding officers and victims, requiring immediate tactical entry and medical intervention before backup can arrive. Police officers with military trauma training often utilise specialised battlefield medical techniques during critical mass casualty events to keep severely injured victims alive. Waitārere Beach is a coastal residential community in the Horowhenua district where local residents and shopkeepers occasionally know those involved in such isolated local tragedies.