Connor victim of ‘random gunfire’

• Author: Kurt Bayer
• Published date: 09 November 2021
• Publication title: New Zealand Herald, The (Auckland, New Zealand)

With police understood to have the alleged killer in custody, one man still on the run, and three people appearing in court yesterday charged with being accessories after the fact to murder, new details have emerged around how the incident may have unfolded.

Connor Whitehead (above) a “kind, talented and deeply loyal” teenager, had checked with his father that it would be okay for him to attend a 15th birthday party and fireworks in the northern suburb of Casebrook on Friday night.

After getting the green light, Burnside High student Whitehead was enjoying himself with friends.

But as the night wore on, it’s believed gatecrashers arrived and there was a feeling that the party was getting out of hand.

The Herald understands that a parent was phoned to try to calm things down.

At about 11pm, an altercation is alleged to have occurred outside the Heaphy Place property. It’s believed that a man then drove into the cul-de-sac and fired several times, possibly at random.

Whitehead, who was standing talking to his mates, and not believed to be involved in any commotion, was struck by gunshots. He suffered serious wounds to the front of his body.

Shocked friends tried to perform emergency first aid to Whitehead, who lay bleeding on the front lawn while 111 was being called.

The first call to emergency services came at 11.03pm, with reports of a “firearms incident”.

Armed police officers who were first on the scene also tried to save the boy’s life and carry out CPR.

St John arrived around 10 minutes later but Whitehead was pronounced dead at the scene.

A massive police investigation — called Operation Stack — was launched, along with a hunt for the killer or killers.

Several properties in and around Christchurch have been raided since, including a house in Burnside on Sunday where a 32-year-old man was arrested after a three-hour standoff with armed police. Officers even used a chainsaw to get access into the house but it’s understood the man was found elsewhere at the address.

The Herald understands that...