Club 574, on Epsom's Manukau Rd, is said to be one of Auckland's oldest brothels. Photo / Club 574
Club 574, on Epsom's Manukau Rd, is said to be one of Auckland's oldest brothels. Photo / Club 574
Police investigating the murder of an Auckland brothel manager are appealing for sightings of a car seen earlier at the crime scene.
As the inquiry continues detectives are seeking information about a blue 2017 Toyota Yaris – registration KSA289 - that was viewed at the scene in Epsom's Manukau Rd.
"Specifically, we want to speak with anyone who sighted the vehicle on Monday night or Tuesday morning or has any information on the vehicle's current whereabouts," acting Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin said today.
"We are continue to canvas the area, review CCTV footage, as well as speaking to a number of people."
Police are seeking sightings of a blue 2017 Toyota Yaris - registration KSA289. Photo / Police
Police had said a member of the public found the body early on Tuesday morning.
But Baldwin said today that police were called to the premises just after midnight "and whilst making inquiries at the address discovered the deceased man".
The man's body had been removed from the scene.
"Police are working to establish who was present at the premises on the afternoon and night of Monday 9 March 2020," Baldwin said.
"We ask anyone who was at the premises to contact the Investigation team with urgency."
Homicide victim a manager at brothel, staff 'shocked'
The murdered man was a manager at the business, shocked staff have been told.
The victim is said to be a man who had worked at the Epsom gentlemen's club, Club 574, for more than 10 years and had lived in a shed at the site at the Manukau Rd property.
Police officers remain at the property today.
A sex worker at the club, who asked not to be named, told the Herald management staff confirmed to employees yesterday that the victim was one of their own.
"We were shocked. We were crying about it. We were really upset about it yesterday," she said.
"Just really shocked about it because we weren't expecting it to be him. We tried calling his phone but it went straight to voicemail."
Police outside a brothel on 574 Manukau Road, Epsom, where a man was found dead in the early hours of yesterday. Photo / Ben Leahy
The worker said the man was among four people whose duty it is to look after the girls on any given day or night.
Another man who was scheduled to work on Monday night and early yesterday - from 7pm to about 3am - did not turn up for his shift, she said.
The victim usually worked on a Monday day shift, Tuesday day shift as well as a Tuesday night shift.
He did not have family in New Zealand. They lived in Asia, she said.
Club 574, in Epsom, is said to be one of Auckland's oldest brothels. Photo / Club 574
Victim lived on site
"Sometimes he'd drive the girls to work, he sorts out the ads for the girls, then he'll manage the actual shifts - he'll talk to the actual clients and ask them if they want to book girls.
"He'd go around to other parlours around that the owner owns and help around there as well."
