By Bill Hickman of RNZ
Lower Hutt residents are worried about the fate of missing man Thomas Basire, who lived on the fringes of the community and hasn’t been seen in months.
They say vulnerable people in the area are “slipping through the cracks”.
Basire and his partner were a regular sight pushing a shopping trolley through the streets about Queensgate Mall and sleeping rough in nearby parks, doorways and carparks.
The 28-year-old was last seen in late November 2024 walking on the stop bank towards Petone near the Ewen Bridge on Railway Ave.
He was wearing a red long-sleeved sweatshirt, black trousers and black sneakers.
Earlier this week, police said a specialist search team was searching the Hutt River and riverbank for signs of the man.
A worker in the central Lower Hutt CBD said Basire and his partner had often slept in the awning of a shop on Waterloo Rd.
She said she had tried to help and had gifted them clothes in the winter months when they drew dumpsters together to protect them from the elements.
“No one wants to sleep outside and they would move on before the shops opened. He was trying to look after her in the rain and the cold. He was being her pillow and then he’d push their trolley with all of their possessions.”
Lana Wagner of GBO Tropical Design Store said the pair would sleep in the back of the carpark near her shop.
The last time Wagner saw Basire, he was carrying his dinner back towards the library in the weeks leading up to his disappearance.
Basire and his partner were a common sight in the central city, carrying their possessions in a shopping trolley and living in the park near the Hutt Library, Lower Hutt resident Nicole Gilbert said.
Workers in the area told RNZ the pair caused problems at times.
Ronnie Jakob, an alcohol and other drugs counsellor for nearby Te Paepae Ārahi Trust, said he was aware that the couple were living in difficult circumstances and would “park up” in doorways and shelter in bushes nearby.
He said the pair often were “elevated, disregulated” towards each other, but he did not feel that they were outwardly antagonistic to others.
“My impression would be that they probably had a condition that wasn’t being appropriately medicated,” he said.
“I’m always concerned when I see that. They’re not isolated cases, it’s quite common and it is concerning. It means that people are slipping through the cracks and we don’t have a support network that’s robust enough to be there for them.”
RNZ has approached Basire’s partner for comment.
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The 21-year-old man will appear in court in Sydney today.