Wellington- Two men appeared in court Thursday after a
plain-clothed New Zealand police officer was shot dead and another
wounded when they were disturbed while installing a tracking device on
a suspect vehicle.

A 32-year-old man was charged with the murder of Sergeant Don
Wilkinson, 46, and another man, 34, was charged with assault, news
reports said.

Both men, whose names were suppressed by the court, were remanded into custody until September 23.

Police said the two officers ran off when they were discovered in
Mangere near Auckland but were chased in a car and Wilkinson was
fatally wounded with one shot.

The other officer, 44, survived repeated shots and an assault and
was taken to hospital where he underwent surgery, but his injuries were
said not to be life-threatening. (dpa)