Police investigating the discovery of human remains located off the water in Gulf Harbour on Tuesday are today releasing further information in the hopes of identifying the victim.
Acting Detective Inspector Tim Williams, Waitematā CIB, says despite the post-mortem examination being completed earlier this week, Police have limited details to assist with who the victim is.
“We have established the victim is a female, small in stature, who we believe is to be middle-aged.
“At this stage, I am not able to be more specific with the age range, but we can say the victim is not a child, nor do we believe she is a teenager.
“She is believed to be of Asian descent, and from our enquiries to date, we believe the victim may be Chinese.”
Acting Detective Inspector Williams says Police are also releasing images of the clothing the victim was located in.
“These are blue pyjama pants with a distinct pattern on them, and a brands’ emblem on a light-coloured singlet.
“We hope that in releasing these images that someone will come forward with information on who this victim might be.
“She could be somebodies’ mother, sister or even grandmother.”
Police’s next priority will be to then identify and notify the victim’s next-of-kin.
“We want to reassure the community our investigation is continuing to establish the facts to ascertain the full circumstances around the death of this woman,” Acting Detective Inspector Williams says.
“This includes establishing when, where, and how, however the nature of this discovery provides some complexities to the investigation.”
Police are continuing to treat this matter very seriously and we are determined to hold the person, or persons, responsible for her death to account.
“We do appreciate how unsettling this incident is for both the Gulf Harbour and wider community and we want to reassure you we do not believe there is a wider risk to the public in relation to this death,” Acting Detective Inspector Williams says.
The Waitematā investigation team has also been liaising with our colleagues in Canterbury.
“I am aware there has been some speculation that the victim is Ms Yanfei Bao from Christchurch.
“Our teams across the country have made enquiries into this possibility, but we can rule out that this victim is Ms Bao,” Acting Detective Inspector Williams says.
- Police have set up a dedicated phone line to receive information
Police would again like to thank those who have already come forward and given us information.
“We have set up a dedicated phone line to assist us with receiving queries relevant to our investigation,” Acting Detective Inspector Williams says.
The community can contact us on 0800 755 021 to speak directly to the investigation team.
We are continuing to ask anyone who may have information on a woman matching the description who they have concerns for to please get in touch.
Additionally, anyone who was near the water, between Gulf Harbour and Long Bay in the last few days who saw anything of concern to contact us.
If you have a property facing the water, we ask that you check your CCTV, and call Police if there is anything of note.
No piece of information is too little as we work to establish what has occurred.
You can also provide information via our 105 phone service or online at https://www.police.govt.nz/use-105, using Update My Report.
Please reference file number 240312/9837.
Alternatively, information can be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.
Police will continue to provide further proactive updates as our investigation allows.
ENDS.
Anna Thompson/NZ Police
