There has been another fatal stabbing in Northland overnight.
Police were called at 10.53pm to a home in Te Kao, north of Kaitaia, where a 77-year-old was found dead.
Police say "his injuries were from a knife".
A 38-year-old man was arrested shortly afterwards and is due to appear in the Kaitaia District Court on Friday.
Detective Inspector Kevin Burke says the alleged offender and the victim are long-time family friends.
"We have been working through the night to establish the circumstances of what has occurred here," he says.
Police say that after the stabbing, the alleged attacker went to another friend’s house and spoke to them. It was at this point that police were called and the man arrested.
This brings Kaitaia's homicide toll to 11 in seven years, leaving questions being asked whether Kaitaia is the country's murder capital.
Earlier in the week Northland community leader Ricky Houghton said three recent knife attacks in Kaitaia show police are under-resourced.
However Far North Mayor John Carter disputed the claimed saying more needs to be done by the community.
"The real question is 'are we working closely enough together? Instead of working in silos, are we working in a holistic way?' And that I’m not quite so confident about."
Mayor Carter told Newshub the resources are available to improve the situation.
"That's what we are working on, to make sure that we have all the things that we need. From our welfare, education, policing [and] whether we are all working together in unison to make sure we are hitting the right buttons."
New Zealand Police Commissioner Mike Bush announced on Friday six more staff will be stationed in the Northland district in light of recent incidents.
Newshub.
