Mid-morning on May 7 2009, Napier was put into lockdown after Senior Constable Len Snee of Taradale was shot and killed at a Chaucer Road address, close to the downtown city centre. Two other officers were injured and taken to hospital, along with a civilian with serious injuries.

Jan Molenaar was identified as the gunman. He continued to defy police, preventing their efforts to retrieve Snee's body where it had fallen. The standoff continued until May 9, when Molenaar's body was found in the house.