Family wants teen's body home

Daniel Lado. Photo / Supplied

The father of a teenage boy missing presumed drowned said he brought him to New Zealand for a chance of a better life.

Daniel Lado, 15, disappeared while boogie boarding with friends at Piha last Sunday afternoon.

The board washed to shore without him on it and his body has not been found.

His family are using a unit behind the Piha Surf Life Saving Club as a base while they make daily searches of Auckland's wild west coast and hold candlelit vigils.

His eldest sister Diana, 22, said the family had accepted Daniel's death but wanted a proper farewell.

"We need him to come back, we need his body for closure. We can accept he has passed away but we can't accept that we can't say goodbye to him.

"Going out there helps us to be closer with him."

Daniel was born in Jordan to a Sudanese father and Egyptian mother but was brought to New Zealand when he was six months old.

His father Alison said he moved to New Zealand with his former wife to give their three children a chance at a better life.

"The only reason I came here was for the children, so they didn't get into trouble with wars and everything."

He said the last week had been like a "bad dream but you can't wake up".

He has been at the beach every day and colleagues from the air conditioning company where he works had helped with the search. "They are good men and I thank them all for the support." Diana described Daniel, a year 11 student at Liston College, as happy, full of life and having many friends.

"Daniel would give everything a go in life. He could be mischievous but he was always happy and could never sit still.

"He loved New Zealand and wanted to join the Army when he finished school."

On the day of his disappearance Daniel had gone to the beach with friends and his rugby coach. The family got a call from police at about 5pm telling them he was missing.

"We went out there straight away," said Diana. "People said not to because we couldn't do anything but we needed to know what was happening."

Piha Surf Life Saving Club captain Tony Featherstone was on duty last Sunday and said Daniel had been in the water without flippers or a cord connecting him to his boogie board. Daniel's friends saw him catch a wave and fall off.