Mr John Sherman, of Auckland, New Zealand Bravery Medal for an act of bravery
Mid-afternoon on 3 September 2021, a man, who had been under intense Police surveillance, entered a supermarket in New Lynn, Auckland and acquired a large kitchen knife, which he used to indiscriminately attack people across several aisles of the store. Within minutes, the offender caused significant injuries to five individuals and attempted to attack members of the public and staff who had barricaded themselves in a storeroom, before being fatally shot by Police officers. Mr John Sherman was present in the supermarket at the time of the attack. He heard screams and saw injured people on the ground. Mr Sherman attempted to distract the offender by approaching him with a trolley, with the offender moving towards him in response. Mr Sherman remained amongst a loose group of other shoppers who continued to occupy the offender’s attention, using stanchions and trolleys to maintain distance and barriers. The shoppers retreated to either end of an aisle, with the offender in the middle, his attention split between the groups. At this time, two Police officers arrived to confront the offender, who was subsequently fatally shot.