Hawke's Bay homicide: Anguish of dog walker who found burned teen's body

WARNING: Contains content some people may find upsetting

The dog walker who sparked a homicide investigation after discovering the remains of a teen in a burned-out car says he is mentally scarred at what he witnessed.

Police revealed this morning that the young woman found dead in a torched car in the River Rd Recreation Reserve's car park was 18-year-old Ariki Rigby.

Police and Victim Support are offering the family of the Napier teen support, and homicide investigation bosses say they are "following a number of lines of inquiry in relation to Ariki's death".

Kevin Monrad made the shocking find in the car park at the River Rd Recreational Reserve last Monday when he took his dog for a walk.

At that stage, the wreck of the car had been in the car park for two days. Police who first visited the scene had initially thought the charred body in the wreck were those of an animal and a towing truck had been booked last week to take it to a wrecker's yard.

Police today confirmed the body found in a burned out car was of Napier teen Ariki Rigby. Photo / Supplied

Monrad took a closer look at the vehicle when he was walking past last Monday, and said it was obvious the body in the back was human after noticing shoulder-length hair and a silver necklace.

Other dog walkers told him the remains were those of a dog, while he says police officers who responded to a call from him initially told him it was a sheep.

Talking to the Herald, Monrad said his heart went out to the woman – and her family – and said the week since his find had been mentally traumatic.

"The week has been pretty s*** to be honest," he said.

"I have been off and on ... it has been like a movie. I have just finished having a moment literally ... it is pretty s***.

"I have been reliving what I saw and looking at some possibilities [of what happened]."

The Hastings man said the homicide – and the way whoever was responsible tried to dispose of the young woman's body – was "too close to home".

Three floral tributes have been laid where Ariki Rigby's body was found in a torched car. Photo / Neil Reid

When he had inspected the vehicle he had "noticed inside the car what to me looked like a corpse".

On closer view he discovered a woman's body which was lying "face down behind the driver's seat".

He said it was clear that she had multiple bone fractures consistent with someone who had been badly "beaten".

The awful nature of the discovery had left him mentally shattered, he said.

Last Monday he went on a return road trip from Hastings to Whanganui to try to clear his head of what he had seen.

A week on, and the mental pain was still very raw.

"I am trying to talk when I can about it," he said.

"When I am caught off guard, it is a bit easier to talk about it.

"There has been a heap of times when I have wanted to go and talk to someone about it. But to jump in the car and go there without changing my mind halfway down the road, or talking yourself out of it, [is hard]."

His network of friends were constantly checking on him to make sure he was okay and also offering him the opportunity to talk.

Police have not spoken to Monrad since he made the grisly find.

Monrad said he wanted whoever was responsible to be caught, and justice to be served for the victim of the crime which has left Hawke's Bay residents shocked.

Police officer and forensics staff at the scene of the grisly discovery last Tuesday. Photo / Neil Reid

"Hopefully they will find out within the next few days and get some closure.

"The sooner the better would be better ... for everyone."

Police today urged anyone with information in relation to Ariki's death to contact them.

Her sister said on social media on Sunday: "You funny and beautiful! I love you sister. Come home. I will find you soon.

"I won't rest till I do."

A post from another family member stated: "We take this time to acknowledge everyone who has showed love and concern in helping us find our Ariki Rigby. All your efforts are greatly appreciated.

"However it is with our deepest regret that we inform you all that our beautiful girl has been identified as the wahine in that burnt-out car in Havelock North.

"If you have any information and details surrounding her death to please contact the Hastings Police Station in relation to Operation Sphynx.

"Respectfully we ask for space and patience while we grieve."

A police officer talks to a dog walker at the River Road Recreational Reserve last weekend. Photo / Neil Reid

On Saturday, police returned to the scene where the car containing Ariki's remains was found in a bid to seek any information from people who used the popular biking and dog walking location.

It came a day after they confirmed they had launched a homicide investigation into the case, having earlier in week described it as an "unexplained death".

At the time, detective inspector Dave De Lange said police were "working hard to identify this woman and to establish what has happened to her".

"This weekend we will have our community bus at the River Rd Recreational Reserve to speak with anyone who may have been in the area last weekend and have information they think may be relevant to police."

Three bunches of flowers lie at the spot where the car had been torched.

De Lange earlier said police were "determined" to find out what happened to the woman and "hold the person or persons responsible for her death to account".

The Herald revealed last Tuesday that the first officers to check out the vehicle didn't realise the remains were human.

The car park where Ariki Rigby's body was found in a burned out car is a popular destination for cyclists and dog walkers. Photo / Neil Reid

A police spokesperson said at the time that when officers first attended after the torched car was reported to them by members of the public, that "due to the condition of the vehicle and debris from the fire, did not immediately identify that human remains were in the cabin of the car".

"A subsequent inspection of the vehicle revealed suspected human remains."

After the Herald's story, Eastern Police District Commander Jeanette Park said police would be "reviewing" their initial response.

Park said the condition of the vehicle and debris from the fire meant staff did not immediately identify the human remains.

The reserve is a popular area for cyclists and people walking dogs, providing access to the Tukituki River and adjacent cycleways.

But it also was the scene of anti-social behaviour, one local said

Local winemaker Dr Morton Osborne – a former clinical psychologist - said he had told police officers involved in a ground search around the car park there had been "unusual car activity" around the car park over the past few weeks.

He believed the area was also being increasingly used as a hook-up spot for couples, as well as a location where drug deals were being done.

He said the car park had a history of being a place where thieves would take stolen cars, "rarking" them up, before torching them.

River Rd resident and Akarangi Wines' Morton Osborne says the car park where the teen's body was found has a history of anti-social behaviour. Photo / Neil Reid

His rural River Rd property had also been targeted by thieves, including break-ins of sheds and the taking of a trailer, stainless steel tank, chainsaws, and an arc welder.

"It is all the joys of living at the end of a no-exit road on the outskirts of town," Osborne, who has owned and operated Akarangi Wines since 1981, said.

"It is where people come and bring their surreptitious relationships out here."

As shock reverberated through the community near some of Hawke's Bay's most prestigious vineyards, another long-time local man said his heart went out to the dead woman and her family.

"Our thoughts and comments would be the same for most New Zealanders . . . just shock, it is appalling and terrible.

"It is a tragedy for everybody concerned. We feel so much for the woman and her family."

• Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 105 quoting file number 220905/1265. Information could also be provided anonymously to Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.