Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming: Driver charged after first female police officer killed in line of duty in Nelson, New Zealand

A veteran New Zealand police officer has become the first woman to be killed in the line of duty after she and a colleague were allegedly deliberately run down on New Year’s Day.

Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming and Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay were patrolling in Nelson, a city at the top of New Zealand's South Island, when they were struck by a car at speed just after 2am.

Both officers were critically injured and rushed to hospital.

Sergeant Fleming died later that day, while Sergeant Ramsay is now in a stable condition and beginning to recover.

Two members of the public were also struck alongside a third police officer.

On Thursday, New Zealand Police Commissioner Richard Chambers announced the 32-year-old alleged driver had been charged with eight offences including murder and attempted murder.

Commissioner Chambers labelled Sergeant Fleming’s death “completely unprovoked”.

“Lyn was a beautiful soul and her death will be felt across the Nelson community and our Police family,” he said.

“Lyn and Adam, like so many of our officers, were working on New Year’s Eve to keep people safe on a night intended for celebration.

“It fills me with great sadness that their efforts to do so have ended in a senseless act that has taken the life of one of our colleagues and seriously injured another.”

The alleged attack unfolded at Buxton Square, a shopping precinct just a few hundred metres from Nelson Police Station.

Since 1890, there have been 33 other officers killed by a criminal act while carrying out their duties, according to New Zealand Police.

The last was Constable Matthew Hunt who was shot dead during a traffic stop in June 2020.

Sergeant Fleming was described as a “widely respected” officer with 38 years of service in the country’s police force and a cherished daughter, mother and wife.

In a statement supplied by police, Sergeant Fleming’s family requested privacy but acknowledged the efforts of Nelson Hospital and the members of the public that came to her aid.

“We are doing everything we can for Lyn’s family but this is an incredibly difficult time for them as they come to terms with what has happened,” Commissioner Chambers said.

“For New Zealand, Lyn is tragically the first policewoman to be killed in the line of duty and the first police officer in Nelson.

“I know we are all struggling to understand why this has happened.”

NZ Prime Minister Christopher Luxton paid tribute to Sergeant Fleming, saying “this is a devastating day for Police and for New Zealand”.

“Police across New Zealand do an incredible job keeping us safe and it’s heart-wrenching for an officer to lose her life carrying out that duty,” he said.

On Thursday, a minute of silence was held at the t20 cricket match between New Zealand and Sri Lanka at Saxton Oval in Nelson.

The 32-year-old alleged driver will face the Nelson District Court on Friday.