Arrest in relation to killing of Hawke's Bay farmer

Jack Nicholas

A 49-year-old Haumoana man was this morning charged with perverting the course of justice in relation to the Jack Nicholas murder inquiry.

"It is a significant step forward," was how Detective Senior Sergeant Bill Gregory of the Napier CIB described the latest events in the 20-month-old investigation.

The case sparked back into life last Thursday when a specialist search team zeroed in on a Haumoana property the man had previously occupied. The result was the discovery of a single rifle-bullet case. It has been sent to Environmental Science and Research for forensic examination, although police were unable to say how long that process would take.

The property had been searched earlier in the inquiry although nothing had been found.

The case had been found in a place police described as "not immediately apparent to the eye".

As a further result of last week's search, this morning police visited a Haumoana man, described as a construction labourer, at his house as he was about to leave for work. They took him to the Napier Police Station to be interviewed.

Mr Gregory said that as a result of the interview the man was arrested on the charge of perverting the course of justice. The man had been interviewed at length earlier in the investigation.

The specialist search team moved in to make detailed searches of two other Haumoana properties today - neighbouring properties to the one searched last week.

As well as the specialist searchers, a firearms-detection dog unit was called in.

Detectives also spoke to "several" other people during the weekend in relation to the inquiry.

Mr Gregory said police were keeping the latest developments in perspective because they had had previous hopes raised and later dashed.

"We are just following a line of enquiry and we hope it will lead to a result."

The arrested man was scheduled to appear in the Napier District Court to face the charge later today.

The family of murdered Puketitiri farmer Mr Nicholas has been buoyed by recent developments in the inquiry, but, like police, will be taking things one step at a time.

One of the dead man's sons, Oliver Nicholas, said today the family had never lost hope that one day the case would be solved and justice would be done.

"It has to be solved," he said today. "They are still relying on that one vital bit of evidence, but they have obviously got their sights on something. You have to remain hopeful."

Mr Nicholas said the family had struggled with their loss but had to keep going forward.

He said it had been especially tough on the grandchildren of 71-year-old Mr Nicholas.

The youngsters had found it difficult to comprehend what had happened to their grandad.

- HAWKE'S BAY TODAY