Tongans wounded in alleged knife attack released from hospital Featured
Police at the scene of an alleged stabbing in Market St in central Blenheim, later on Sunday morning.
23 June, 2021. Two men who survived an alleged knife attack that killed their friend Hiko Lynch at the weekend have been released from hospital.
The men were out celebrating a birthday when they were seriously injured in central Blenheim in the early hours of Sunday, in what police believe was an altercation between the Tongan men and a gang from outside the region.
A total of 10 people were arrested in the hours that followed, with charges ranging from murder, wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and assault, to possession of a knife in a public place.
The two Tongan men who were injured on Sunday have now been released from Blenheim’s Wairau Hospital, a Nelson Marlborough Health spokesperson said on Wednesday.
They were in the country on the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme, which was set up in 2007 to help New Zealand employers hire workers from overseas, mostly the Pacific Islands, when they were unable to employ enough Kiwis.
Tonga's Ministry of Internal Affairs chief executive Dr Fotu Fisiiahi said the injured men would return home once they had recovered.
Officials from the Tongan government’s RSE liaison office had been sent to Blenheim to support the men and the wider Tongan community.
Hiko Lynch, 23, died after an alleged knife attack in central Blenheim on Sunday.
They were also working with Immigration New Zealand to return Lynch to his family in Tonga on a repatriation flight on June 30, after a post-mortem assessment had been completed in Christchurch.
Lynch, one of seven children, had been in New Zealand since 2019 working in the horticulture and viticulture industries. He had not been able to return home between seasons because of the coronavirus pandemic.
He had planned to marry his finacee of six years when he returned to his hometown of Holonga.
Lynch’s employer, Hortus, had started a Givealittle page to support the 23-year-old’s family.
“We are so sorry such harm came to you in our care,” says a note near where Hiko Lynch was fatally injured in Blenheim.
Flowers and messages started to gather in Marjet St this week, and a memorial ceremony was planned for 7pm on Thursday. A venue was yet to be confirmed.
Police continued to appeal to anyone who might have video footage taken at Club Envy, a nightclub in town, or around the Market St area in the early hours of Sunday, June 20.
A dedicated portal had been set up to allow anyone with images or recordings to upload information. It could be accessed at alaia.nzpolice.org/.
- Stuff
