Clarks Beach boating tragedy: Kevin McQuire pleads not guilty to manslaughter of Gemma and Ryder Ferregel

Ryder Ferregel, 10, has been missing since a boat with five people on board capsized near Clarks Beach in November.

A 62-year-old recreational fishing boat skipper who was charged with two counts of manslaughter two weeks ago - six months after his vessel capsized off Clarks Beach in Manukau Harbour - can now be identified.

Name suppression lapsed this morning for Kevin McQuire as he stood in the dock for the first time at the High Court in Auckland.

He was the partner of Gemma Ferregel, 39, who died in the November 6 tragedy last year. Ferregel’s son Ryder, 10, is lost at sea and is presumed dead.

McQuire wore an untucked dress shirt today as he stood before Justice Sally Fitzgerald, who set a trial date for July next year.

He remained quiet as defence lawyer Guyon Foley entered not guilty pleas to both charges on his behalf.

The lawyer declined to continue pursuing interim name suppression, which was granted during McQuire’s first court appearance on May 24 at Manukau District Court.

McQuire’s boat capsized after it was hit by two waves while dredging for scallops. The defendant and two others survived, with the others swimming to shore to sound the alarm.

Police - with the aid of Search and Rescue, volunteers and the Coastguard - searched for Ryder for more than two weeks. After the operation was suspended, the child’s father, Newton Ferregel, continued with a private search, using $85,000 raised on Givealittle to pay for private helicopter searches until Christmas.

Gemma Ferregel died when the boat capsized.

Eventually, he too conceded it was time to let go, he previously told the Herald.

Although suspending the search, a police investigation and legal review continued.

“Police acknowledge the profound impact this incident has had on the families involved and the wider community,” Inspector Joe Hunter, the area commander for Counties Manukau South, said after McQuire’s arrest.

Newton Ferregel described his son as “a loving, cheeky character”.

“He was an outdoorsy kid who was always on the go,” he previously recalled. “He loved his motocross and was good at digger driving. You would never see him on a computer, he was always outside and by my side helping me.”