Police investigating the death of a 23-year-old unemployed man whose body was found at Warrington, north of Dunedin on Friday morning (15 April), have today laid murder charges against three Dunedin men.
The three, aged 17, 25 and 47, were arrested late yesterday and have been jointly charged with the murder of James Mathew Ellis, aged 23, most recently of Oamaru, at Warrington, on or about Friday 15 April.
The trio will appear in the Dunedin District Court tomorrow and Police have opposed bail for two of the three men.
Mr Ellis was found dead by two people out walking at the Blueskin Bay Estuary.
Police launched a homicide investigation later on Friday, with a large team working at Warrington over the past two days to complete a scene examination and search. These will be completed today.
While Police have recovered items which will be subject to expert analysis, they remain open-minded about Mr Ellis' injuries.
Police with the assistance of Christchurch ESR are also today examining three residential addresses - two in Dunedin and one in Oamaru - and forensically examining two vehicles of interest, one of which is the white Mazda 626 Saloon.
AOS staff were used to secure a Dunedin house where two of the three men were located late yesterday.
Police still have a number of people they are talking to in relation to the incident but say that the inquiry progressed quickly.
"We are still trying to locate witnesses who attended a gathering at an Oamaru address overnight on Thursday and early Friday morning. Both Mr Ellis and the three men facing charges appear to have been at the address," Detective Senior Sergeant Kallum Croudis said.
"The result in bringing charges is a testament to the excellent collaboration and cooperation between police staff in Gore, Oamaru, Dunedin and Christchurch, as well as urgency around speaking to potential witnesses," Detective Snr Sgt Croudis said.
As the case is now before the court there will be no further Police comment.
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