The family of senior policewoman Lyn Fleming have spoken after a jury found Hayden Tasker guilty of her murder earlier today.
Tasker drove his car into Fleming and her colleague, Adam Ramsay, on foot patrol in Nelson in the early hours of New Year's Day last year.
Speaking after the verdict, her son, Aren Olsen, joined by his sister Rayna and their father Bryn, said January 1, 2025 was "the hardest day our family has ever had to live through".
“Sitting at mum’s bedside, watching the person you loved slowly slip away from the world. The second hardest day has been every day since then. But I don’t want what I have to say today to be about the pain that we have been through.
“I want to take this opportunity to thank everybody for everything they have done from the moment that it happened until now, and for everything that comes after.
“For all the members of the public that leapt into action to do everything they could to save her, the first responders, the members of the police team, that did everything they could both to contain the situation and since then, to hold the person who did it responsible, we thank you.
“Nothing that has happened today will bring our mum, our partner, our sibling back to us. In that, I don’t think I can honestly say we have seen justice.
“But today we have seen accountability, and for that we are eternally grateful to the prosecution team, to everybody who did everything they could to get us the result that we’ve seen today."
The family thanked the members of the police staff who had worked the case, along with the members of the public and first responders who gave evidence.
Fleming's younger sister, Jo Brown, said the manner in which she died was "nothing short of barbaric".
"I sat in court every day listening and watching the most horrendous evidence. We were woken up on New Year's Day to the most heartbreaking news any family could receive.
"The trip from Wellington to Nelson was the longest I've ever had.
"We knew it wasn't going to be a happy ending, but we cannot thank the first responders and hospital staff enough. We know how hard you battled so we could say goodbye.
"My darling dad passed away in February. For the last year of his life, he was heartbroken, losing his second-born daughter.
"I promised my dad I would carry the torch and attend court every day on his behalf.
"I fulfilled my promise to you, Dad, and we got the result you so desperately wanted."
Brown added, "Lyn, you should have been able to live out your retirement with your beautiful grandson, wander the hills of your beloved Howard Valley.
"Now together, Lyn and Dad, we miss you and love you both so much that you can finally rest in peace."
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