Alone at his rural property, Peter Hull felt unsafe when a man kept coming to his property, taunting and threatening him. He called police several times, but they never arrived. So he picked up his gun. Tony Wall reports on what happened next.
Peter Hull was at his wits’ end. He’d called police seven times on the evening of September 19, 2020, complaining about a man who kept coming to his rural property and threatening him.
At one point, he even told them he had a gun and was considering using it to protect himself.
But officers never arrived at Hull’s property at Oropi, 20km south of Tauranga.
In the end Hull grabbed his .22 rifle and fired what he describes as multiple “warning shots” into the dark to try to scare off his nemesis, with whom he’d been feuding for a couple of years.
One of the bullets smashed through the window of the man’s car and lodged in his shoulder – he was taken to Waikato Hospital where surgeons removed the bullet.
Hull claims he had no idea he’d shot the man until much later. He also says he didn’t realise that when he opened fire on what he thought was the man or his associates returning, it was actually police officers, finally responding to reports of shots fired.
Christel Yardley/Stuff
Peter Hull at another property where he spent time on electronic bail.
The case has been dragging through the courts for almost two years. Hull pleaded guilty early on to charges of reckless discharge of a firearm, but not guilty to a charge of intentionally causing grievous bodily harm, which carries a maximum term of 14 years’ imprisonment.
However, in a brief hearing at the Tauranga District Court in July, he pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of wounding with intent to injure, which carries a seven-year maximum jail term, meaning he has now pleaded guilty to all charges.
He will be sentenced in September.
It’s understood the Crown agreed to the amended charge when phone records confirmed that Hull had called police – either on 111 or direct to the station – seven times that night, saying he feared for his life.
Hull spent a couple of weeks in prison after his arrest, but has been on electronic bail the rest of the time, having sold his property and moved to another part of the country. He lost his job as an automotive air conditioning engineer because of his bail restrictions, but has found part-time work as a mechanic.
He is angry police didn’t respond to his emergency calls and didn’t lay charges against the victim for his threatening behaviour.
The call takers assured him a unit had been dispatched, he says, but he learned later that police resources had been tied up at another incident.
He has made a complaint to the Independent Police Conduct Authority, which is still investigating.
Christel Yardley/Stuff
Hull has been on e-bail for almost two years.
He wishes he hadn’t used his gun, but says he was traumatised and exhausted after hours of taunting.
“I cocked up, I didn’t mean to shoot the guy at all,” he told Stuff. “I was absolutely packing myself and didn’t know what else to do.
“This all could have been avoided, if police had just turned up.”
Police refused to discuss the case before Hull’s sentencing.
The victim, who has interim name suppression, declined to comment.
According to a summary of facts, the man had come to Hull’s property on a motorbike about 5pm – admitting to his wife that he wanted to “rark” Hull up because he believed he was responsible for fresh tyre skid marks across his driveway.
Christel Yardley/Stuff
Peter Hull stood on the hill in front of this house and opened fire with a .22 rifle.
The pair had been feuding for a couple of years – complaining to police about each other’s behaviour, including doing doughnuts and wheelies in each other’s driveways and threatening one another.
The man had been formally trespassed from Hull’s property, the summary says.
On this night, he rode up Hull’s driveway, then retreated back to the road when Hull came out with two dogs.
He revved his motorbike, then began doing skids on the gravel road in front of the property.
Hull stood on a hill at the front of his house and the pair yelled abuse at each other, the man shouting “come down here” and Hull replying “bugger off ya bastard”.
The summary says Hull called police at 5.13pm, reporting that the man was still there, doing skids and threatening to shoot him.
After about 10 or 15 minutes, the man left and went home, but returned to the area a short time later with his wife in their vehicle, planning to visit friends nearby.
Hull called police again to say the man was outside his property, he felt threatened and was tempted to grab a weapon to look after himself, the summary says.
He was advised by the operator not to arm himself and to go inside.
The man and his partner left their friends’ address after about 40 minutes and returned home, but the man was “still annoyed and frustrated” and at about 10pm, asked his wife to drop him off at Hull’s property again.
Christel Yardley/Stuff
The victim hid in the bush across the road when Hull first started firing. Later, he was hit in the shoulder when Hull fired as he drove past.
Once there, he began kicking a bus shelter on the road and yelling out.
Hull, armed with a semi-automatic .22 rifle with a scope, silencer and 10-round magazine, fired one or two warning shots over the top of the victim, the summary says, trying to “scare the [victim] so he would leave”.
The man ran into nearby bush and hid, while Hull used a torch. He couldn’t see the man, but fired more shots to scare him.
The victim could hear bullets hitting the terrain close by him, the summary says. A short time later he was collected by his wife and they went home.
About 11pm, using a different vehicle, the man returned by himself because he realised he’d left his hat behind. He found it near the bus shelter, picked it up and started driving away.
As he passed Hull’s property, the summary says, Hull aimed the torch at him, temporarily blinding him.
Hull fired further shots at the man’s vehicle, causing the passenger window to explode.
Two of the rounds connected with the vehicle, one striking a pillar on the passenger side and another the passenger door. One of the bullets lodged in the man’s left shoulder.
According to the summary, police were notified of the shooting and two police officers set up a cordon about 400m from Hull’s property, believing they were out of sight.
While at the cordon a Suzuki Swift stopped about halfway between them and Hull’s house. Fearing for the safety of the two female occupants, the officers walked to the car to tell them to leave the area, the summary says.
Christel Yardley/Stuff
Police set up a cordon in the bush on this road, but had to come closer when another vehicle suddenly pulled up in the line of fire.
Meanwhile, Hull, unaware that he’d shot the man and thinking he’d returned, opened fire again from the hill.
While speaking to the people in the car, the police officers heard what they described as a shot whizzing past them, the summary says. They told the occupants to get down and take cover.
Then a second shot was fired at them, which sounded closer. One of the officers retreated to the patrol car to radio for help.
The officer who’d remained with the women described hearing a third and fourth shot. One sounded like it hit the gravel very close to him, the other struck the gravel and ricocheted with the rear of the Suzuki.
The officer who had retreated drove up in his patrol car and ferried everyone to safety.
“They feared for their lives but escaped without injury,” the summary says. “[Hull] was unaware that the police were at the address and thought that he was again firing in an attempt to scare away the complainant.”
Hull was arrested by the armed offenders squad.
Later searches of his house found the loaded gun in his bedroom wardrobe. Three spent cartridges were found at the top of his driveway and another seven were found in his front paddock. Numerous other firearms – each more powerful than the .22 – were located in the locked firearms safe in a sleep out. Hull had a licence for the weapons, which he used for hunting and shooting rabbits.
Christel Yardley/Stuff
Peter Hull faces years in prison for what he did that night, but is hoping for a home-based sentence.
Police also found about 7g of cannabis. Hull has pleaded guilty to possessing the drug.
According to the summary, during the course of the evening Hull rang police seven times and his partner, who was in Auckland that night, called them once.
“During these phone calls [Hull] requested assistance from the police and told them that he felt that he had been threatened, that he was scared, and that he couldn’t leave the address due to fears about the animal stock at the address and gates being opened.
“The police did not attend the address despite multiple requests from the defendant for them to do so.”
Peter Hull called police repeatedly – when they didn’t come, he opened fire on a man who’d been taunting him & Latest News Update
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