CIB investigating apparent shooting

Dunedin police are appealing for information after a house in the city was apparently fired at several times early yesterday.

Detectives from the Criminal Investigation Branch are in the preliminary stages of their inquiry after a resident reported finding "pellets" in her home about 10.30am yesterday, several hours after reporting damage to the house, when neighbours heard multiple loud bangs about 5am.

Senior Sergeant Craig Dinnissen, of Dunedin, said police wanted anyone with sightings or other information about the incident in Carnarvon St, Belleknowes to come forward.

No arrests had yet been made in the case.

Police were in Carnarvon St, where the incident is understood to have taken place, early yesterday afternoon.

A Carnarvon St resident told the Otago Daily Times she heard multiple "bangs" about 5am.

"It was just a very noisy car, and then two bangs. It could have been either gunshots or a car backfiring.

"I heard the car go around the street."

She went out to see what was going on, but returned inside as the car came back.

There were "another two bangs", and she realised someone had fired a gun.

Residents of the house declined to comment.

A police spokeswoman could not say if the pellets were fired from an air rifle, but said they were from a firearm, "imitation or otherwise".

Details of the damage caused were unavailable.

The neighbour said there were "noisy parties" at another nearby flat in the street sometimes, but the area was generally quiet and thought of as one of the better areas of the city.

The incident was scary, especially for the people involved, but it did not put her off wanting to live in Carnarvon St.

Another neighbour said he was woken up by the noise, and thought it was "an idiot on a motorbike" and that the bangs were the vehicle backfiring.

The vehicle seemed to "go around the block" before returning, he said.

He was not shocked by the discovery of the pellets, saying that although it was a quiet neighbourhood, the armed offenders squad was called out to the street about 18 months ago.

"Nothing surprises me any more."

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