Police have charged a man with murder after a body was discovered in a car near a Northland service station yesterday morning.
Police were called to Station Rd in Kawakawa at about 7.45am yesterday and found a man’s body in a vehicle in a carpark near the Caltex petrol station.
“The man’s death was initially treated as unexplained, however, it is now believed that he was the victim of a violent assault,” Detective Inspector Rhys Johnston said.
A 49-year-old man located nearby has since been charged with murder, and is expected to appear in the Kaikohe District Court today, police said in an update.
Authorities also released a photo of a black Ford Falcon, registration number BYM765, which was found at the scene of the incident and has since been removed.
Police said it visited the Caltex station at 7.15am yesterday.
Police are appealing for people who may have information on the vehicle to call 105.
“We would like to talk to anyone who noticed this vehicle or spoke with the occupants during the morning of Sunday, April 13,” Johnston said.
Johnston said police are also searching a property in the seaside settlement of Te Tii in relation to the investigation.
Post-mortem and formal identification procedures are still to be carried out in the case.
