UPDATED 4.37PM The Independent Police Conduct Authority has found two police officers were justified in shooting an unarmed Slovakian national in the middle of a public Auckland park last year.

David Cerven told four unarmed officers he had a gun, before clasping his hands and pointing them at two armed police officers who'd just arrived at Myers Park.

They fired a number of shots, and Cerven died at the scene.

The IPCA says while they were justified in shooting him, as they were convinced he had a gun, the officers did not complete a full assessment of the situation before firing.

It says the officers were worried about their colleagues and didn't consider the risks posed to members of the public when they fired at Cerven.

Superintendent Richard Chambers said Mr Cerven had committed a number of violent and serious crimes in the days before his death.

When he refused to surrender peacefully, two armed officers decided to move forwards to arrest him.

"Which is a courageous decision to make when faced with somebody who has been violent, appeared to be unstable, and was not cooperating with us."

Superintendent Chambers said when Mr Cerven appeared to produce a weapon, the officers made the difficult decision to use lethal force, to protect themselves, their colleagues and the public.

But that doesn't ring with Yousuf Moghni, who met Mr Cerven at a Vancouver kickboxing gym in 2012, and said his friend was always happy, smiling and joking.

He said Mr Cerven was very talented, well-liked and respected.

“Great potential. To be honest, a very influential person, lots of people loved him.

“He’s a very good guy, it’s sad to see him go like that.”

He said his friend had been struggling financially and was crying a lot, which was totally out of character.

Mr Moghni said to be a professional fighter, you have to be tough, and Mr Cerven had handled a lot in his training and career.

“There are two kinds of fighters.

“There are meatheads and there are just smart, strong at heart [types] and he was one of them – smart, strong at heart; a genuine guy.”

Mr Moghni said Mr Cerven made some bad decisions, which ended in the worst possible outcome.

He believes the police who responded should have been better prepared and handled the situation differently, rather than taking what he describes as ‘the American way’.

Dan Smith, a friend and workmate of Mr Cerven, But refuses to accept that police were justified in shooting him.

Mr Smith said he never had a gun, so there should have been a number of measures taken by police, before they fired at him.

"Why did they shoot him in the head once, and twice in the chest? If anything they should have wounded him and then once they spotted a gun maybe take more drastic actions."

He said Cerven often talked about how he had nothing.

"I think he was just depressed in the end, because he had an injured knee. He was a professional kick-boxer and once his leg got injured, that was his career over."

Superintendent Chambers said no police staff ever want to come to work and make a decision that involves the use of lethal force.

"It would be wrong to ever suggest that these sorts of decisions, and the outcomes that result, don't have a significant impact on them. Not just in the last year and a bit, but quite frankly forever."