A 49-year-old Far North man appeared in the Kaikohe District Court on Monday morning charged with murder. Photo: RNZ / Peter de Graaf
A 49-year-old Far North man has appeared in court charged with murder following the discovery of a body in a car in Kawakawa on Sunday morning.
Court documents show the victim was killed on Saturday or Sunday, and that he died as a result of a physical assault, not from a weapon.
RNZ understands the man died in the small coastal settlement of Te Tii, north of Kerikeri in the Bay of Islands.
Court documents give a Kaitāia address for the accused but he is believed to have no fixed abode.
Police said the man's body was found in a vehicle left in a carpark on Station Road, near Kawakawa's Caltex service station, about 7.45am on Sunday.
Police are seeking information about this Ford Falcon in Kawakawa on Sunday morning. Photo: Supplied/NZ Police
The accused man appeared this morning in the Kaikohe District Court, when he was remanded in custody. He is next due in the Whangārei High Court on 2 May.
Detective Inspector Rhys Johnston, of the Northland CIB, said the man's death was initially treated as unexplained, but police now believed he had been the victim of a violent assault.
The 49-year-old charged with murder had been located nearby.
Johnston said police were also searching a property in Te Tii as part of their investigation.
He wanted to hear from anyone who had seen a black Ford Falcon, registration BYM765, or spoken to its occupants, on Sunday morning.
The Falcon visited Kawakawa's Caltex service station at 7.15am on Sunday, and was later removed from the scene by police.
Johnston urged anyone with information to call police on 105, quoting reference number 250413/7779.
Information could also be shared anonymously through Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.
Police have yet to release the victim's name.
He was expected to undergo formal identification and a post-mortem examination on Monday.
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