Guards helpless as stabbed prisoner dies before them

An inmate murdered in Hawkes Bay Prison staggered through a door before dying at the feet of two guards.

Sonny John Keremete, 25, died on Wednesday morning after he was stabbed in a high-medium security wing unit.

The crime for which he was jailed is not known, but he had been in trouble with the law since he was a teenager.

Detective Sergeant Warren Murdoch said Keremete was in a unit with about eight other inmates at the time of the stabbing.

Two guards were escorting a prisoner through a door into the unit when Keremete, who had wounds to his upper body, staggered towards them.

"As they opened the door, the victim came through stumbling and fell. They rushed in and did whatever they could. He basically died in front of them."

A post mortem was completed yesterday afternoon while police continued to interview the other inmates in the unit.

It has been reported that 28-year-old Dartelle Alder, who is serving a life sentence with a minimum of 17 years non-parole for the murder, kidnap and rape of a Wellington woman in 2001, is one of the inmates questioned.

The guards were also being interviewed.

Mr Murdoch said the scene examination was expected to be completed today.

Keremete is believed to be a member of Black Power. He first made headlines at the age of 16 when he escaped while being taken from Tokoroa to Waikeria prison in 1997.

* A minimum security prisoner from Hawkes Bay prison who walked away from a supervised forestry work party yesterday morning has been recaptured.