There were fresh calls for New Zealand’s unarmed police to carry guns after a lone constable was attacked with a machete, leaving him with slashes across his face, deep cuts and fractures to his head and arms and a finger severed from one hand.
Detective Inspector Chris Bensemann said senior constable Bruce Mellor was attacked and left to die after he pulled over two teenagers driving a stolen car during a routine stop.
A passing motorist spotted the bloodied Mellor, 57, lying on the roadside and called emergency services.
Mellor, who suffered a fractured jaw and eye socket and has several skull fractures,is in a serious but stable condition after surgery.
Police Association president Greg O’Connor says it’s time for every police officer to have access to firearms.
New Zealand police patrol unarmed, but pressure to give officers ready access to guns has mounted in recent years.
