• The father of the student fatally attacked at an Auckland bus stop says he was a “kind soul” with “no enemies”. 
• A vigil will be held this morning at the St Johns Rd bus shelter. 
• A memorial has been set up for the victim, Kyle Whorrall, a 33-year-old PhD student at the University of Auckland and Landcare Research. 

The father of the student killed at an Auckland bus stop says he is grappling with the violent attack on his son who had no enemies and was a “kind soul”. 

A vigil will be held this morning for American student Kyle Whorrall at the location on St Johns Rd where he was fatally injured on Saturday night. 

Kyle’s American-based father John Whorrall told the Herald he is still coming to terms with his son’s tragic death. 

“His personality was meek, mild, he wouldn’t have done anything to anyone, I am still trying wrap my head around how any of this is possible. 

“He’s never had an enemy in his life.” 

He said his son was a kind soul who had dreamed of moving to Auckland to study at the university his whole life. 

“His mother took them there on vacation years and years ago, and he just fell in love with the place.” 

John said he envisioned his son living happily in Auckland and fulfilling his lifelong dream for the rest of his life, eventually becoming a professor at the university. 

“I knew he was never going to come home, but I didn’t think it would be like this.” 

He said his son was not the type “at all” to start a fight. 

• 'Immortality': Bus stop memorial for slain student, bugs could be named after him
• 'Did nothing wrong': Student's last minutes before bus stop killing
• Watch: Bus stop homicide - police seek black SUV; victim named by colleagues

Meadowbank vigil to ‘reclaim neighbourhood’ 

Organisers of this morning’s vigil say they want to “reclaim the neighbourhood” after the fatal attack in Meadowbank. 

A group of students and staff from the nearby St John’s Theological College will lead a short vigil at 9.30am, saying it would be an opportunity to “reflect, pray for Kyle’s whānau and to stand together for peace, healing and aroha in our neighbourhood”. 

The college added that it wanted to “reclaim the neighbourhood with life, warmth and care”. 

The apparently random attack on Whorrall, who was sitting at the bus stop at around 10pm, has unnerved people who lived nearby. 

“It is just the senselessness and randomness of it,” said Mike Maloney, a resident who lives 150m from the bus stop. “The way they saw a bloke sitting at the bus stop, did a U-turn, and beat him to death.” 

Floral tributes were left at the St Johns Rd bus stop where Kyle Whorrall was murdered on Saturday night. 

Neighbours are also determined that the offenders be caught as soon as possible. 

“There will be a camera somewhere, or someone will know what has happened,” Maloney said. “This is not one you get away with. This is just a matter of time.” 

The hunt for the killers is ongoing, with police yesterday knocking on doors, returning to the crime scene, and seeking CCTV or dashcam footage from motorists who may have been passing through on Saturday night. 

Floral tributes for Kyle Whorrall at the St Johns Rd bus shelter. Photo / Michael Craig 

Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin said earlier this week that police were also committing significant resources to finding two suspects involved in the attack, who fled the scene in a black SUV. 

Footage from an Auckland Transport bus captured images of Whorrall at the bus stop, the black SUV and a white ute, just before the attack took place. 

The bus shelter has been turned into a makeshift memorial for Whorrall, filled with flowers and lights. 

On Wednesday, mourners gathered at the shelter, some hugging and crying. 

‘Soft-spoken and polite’ 

Whorrall moved to New Zealand from the United States in 2021 to study for a PhD. 

Based at Landcare Research, he had nearly completed his degree. 

Fellow students and academics spoke about his enthusiasm for entomology. He had shown a particular interest in beetles. 

“I interacted with Kyle while he was an undergrad, during field classes, and museum work,” said Doug Yanega, from the University of California’s entomology department. 

“He was soft-spoken, polite and enthusiastic, which is fairly typical for an entomology student. 

“It was clear, however, that he was keen to take his interests to the next level, as he had approached me looking to do genuine taxonomic research as an undergrad, with firefly beetles, at that time. 

“Most entomology students don’t get into research until they begin their graduate studies, so Kyle had clearly made up his mind that he wanted to turn his interest into a career.” 

Yanega said he was happy to hear Whorrall had moved to New Zealand to work with a friend Yanega had attended graduate school with at the University of Kansas. 

“While it is certainly not the same as being family, the relationship between a student and their thesis adviser can be very close ... The entomological community is very close-knit and supportive, and even as briefly as Kyle had been involved in entomology, there were many people who knew and respected him. 

“I would not be surprised at all to see, over the next few years, at least a few new species described and named in Kyle’s honour, as that’s very much the kind of thing entomologists do to pay tribute to lost colleagues – a small but meaningful form of immortality, as it were.” 

Online, friends described Whorrall as kind-hearted and kind-spirited. 

“His love for bugs and nature was wholesome and innate,” one said. “May he rest in peace.” 

Last moments 

The police investigation is centred on a black SUV captured in footage from the scene. 

Police say two occupants of the erratically-driven vehicle attacked Whorrall while he was sitting alone at a bus stop in Meadowbank on Saturday night. 

He was struck with a “long” weapon about 10pm, suffering multiple head injuries, and later died in hospital. 

Herald graphic on US student Kyle Whorrall's death. 

“He did nothing wrong,” said Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin on Monday. 

“He was sitting at a bus stop. And it’s a senseless attack. And we are determined to hold those people to account.” 

Police said they had pieced together “snippets” of the incident from witness accounts and video footage from a passing bus and shopping centre. 

Whorrall, who lived nearby, had bought groceries at a Woolworths supermarket on Gerard Way about 9.40pm, which was part of his usual routine. 

Auckland University student Kyle Whorrall was attacked at a bus stop and died later in hospital. 

He then walked about 400m up St Johns Rd to the bus stop, which took five or six minutes. 

At about 9.50pm, a white Toyota ute was cut off by a black SUV, which was doing a U-turn. Footage from a passing bus captured an image of Whorrall sitting at the bus stop and the two vehicles. 

It was not his usual bus stop, and it was not yet known why he was there. He did not flag any buses. Baldwin said he might have been sheltering from stormy weather. 

Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin speaking to the media about the homicide investigation. Photo / Michael Craig. 

Friends and former colleagues said Whorrall was known for scouring the streets at night for insects and may have been doing so on Saturday night. 

About 10pm, the SUV parked at the bus stop, facing the wrong direction. Two occupants got out of the car and attacked Whorrall for about 30 seconds before speeding in their car in an easterly direction towards College Rd. 

“The victim was subjected to a senseless attack, leaving him with multiple head injuries,” Baldwin said. 

“No one should be subjected to the appalling level of violence that the victim suffered on Saturday night.” 

Police launched a homicide investigation after the incident on St Johns Rd. Photo / Alex Burton. 

The occupants of the white ute were “critical” witnesses and police were appealing for them to come forward, while emphasising they were not suspects in the investigation. 

They could be able to confirm how many people were in the black vehicle, or might have captured the vehicle’s number plate. 

While footage had been captured of the black SUV, it was not clear enough to identify a number plate. The attackers’ weapon had not been found. 

Kyle Whorrall, 33, died after being attacked at a bus stop on St Johns Rd in Meadowbank on Saturday.