KEY POINTS:
Police are treating as "significant" the sighting of a cyclist smeared with blood near the home of Napier murder victim Chattrice Maihi-Carroll on the morning she died.
The naked body of the mother-of-four was found by her sister in her Cottrell Cres home in the suburb of Onekawa on January 21.
The 46-year-old, who lived alone, was stabbed many times and may have been sexually assaulted.
Investigation head Detective Inspector Sam Aberahama said yesterday that a man came forward late last week to report seeing a cyclist in the area on the morning Ms Maihi-Carroll died.
Mr Aberahama said the cyclist had blood smeared on the right side of his face and on his chest.
He was seen turning right from Venables Ave into Riverbend Rd and heading towards Bledisloe Rd around 9am. Venables Ave is very close to Cottrell Cres.
The male cyclist was described as European, 20 to 30 years old, short, fat, with pale skin and long gingery-blond hair that was sticking out from under his bike helmet. He was wearing a black short-sleeved shirt, open to the middle of his chest.
Mr Aberahama said police were very keen to speak to him.
"Other people should have seen him cycling along the road and he would have been distinctive. It's imperative that we find out information about this man as soon as possible," he said.
The police are still seeking information on a dark green Toyota Estima people-mover that was seen parked up the top of the driveway next to Ms Maihi-Carroll's flat on the night of Sunday, January 20.
The inquiry team of 25 has been boosted by the arrival of five officers from Gisborne and Wellington.
On Friday, Ms Maihi-Carroll's brother Whiu Carroll said his family were "quite happy" with the police inquiry, despite suggestions that early delays in revealing the nature of her death had hindered the investigation.
"It's important for us to have some closure as to why this has happened. I am quite lost as to why this has happened."
- NZPA
