WELLINGTON: An unarmed New Zealand policeman was shot and killed on an Auckland street Friday, becoming the first officer to die on duty for more than a decade in the normally peaceful South Pacific nation.

Police said the officer and a colleague were approaching a crashed car when a gunman produced a rifle and opened fire.

One officer died, another received serious leg injuries and a bystander was struck and badly hurt as the two men drove off in a second car, New Zealand’s police commissioner Andrew Coster said.

He said two persons of interest were being questioned after being apprehended several hours later following a massive manhunt which also resulted in police seizing a firearm.

“This is a shocking situation. It is the worst news that police and police officers’ families can ever receive in the course of what we do,” Coster said.

“Our officers walk towards danger every day, our job is to keep them safe.”

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern offered condolences to the officer’s family and police colleagues.