Knife used for murder Indian-origin taxi driver in Auckland found

Auckland, Feb 1(ANI): New Zealand police have said that they have found a knife that may have been used in the killing of Indian-origin taxi driver Hiren Mohini in Auckland suburbs on Sunday.

Mohini, a 39-year-old Mount Roskill resident, died on an ambulance stretcher minutes after being stabbed repeatedly by a frenzied customer for the sake of a 20 dollar fare, in what police described as a frenzied attack.

Detective Senior Sergeant Hywel Jones confirmed that a knife has been found at the scene, but refused to give any more details about it other than to say that the knife was being forensically examined.

"It was a frenzied attack. This is a complex murder investigation. Police were working on some strong leads that will assist us to locate the killer," Stuff.co.nz reports quoted Detective Jones, as saying.

Police are also looking at CCTV footage near where the passenger was picked up in the city and carrying out door-to-door inquiries in Mt. Eden.

It is believed that Mohini, a husband and father of two, picked up his attacker at the central Sky City taxi stand before travelling the short distance to View Rd in Mt Eden. At 1.23 a.m. he pushed the panic button in his cab, sending an emergency alert across the whole Auckland Co-Op network.

Witnesses claim that a young male was seen running towards Esplanade Road immediately after the crash, police say.

The man they are seeking is described as a slim-built, dark-skinned male in his mid to late twenties with long, greasy hair to the back of his neck.

He was wearing a long-sleeved button-up shirt, dark denim jeans and black leather shoes and was carrying a black bag with a strap. (ANI)