Man gets life for bludgeoning father

Tauranga man Murray Tait has been found guilty of murdering his father in June last year. Photo / Bay of Plenty Times

A Tauranga man has been sentenced to life imprisonment for murder after bludgeoning his 76-year-old father's skull with a claw hammer in June last year.

Murray Tait, 46, was found guilty of murder by a jury at the Hamilton High Court in July.

He was sentenced by Justice John Priestly at a special High Court sitting in Tauranga this morning.

His sentence includes a minimum non-parole period of 10 years.

The attack, which involved at least five blows to David Noel Tait's head and body, occurred on June 22, 2010 in the bathroom of the 15th Avenue home the offender and his parents shared.

The attack following a heated argument between him and his father over the washing.

Mr Tait snr died the following day in Tauranga Hospital.

During his sentencing, Justice Priestly strongly recommended that Tait received treatment for his recently diagnosed severe obsessive compulsive personality disorder while in jail and urged the prisoner to take advantage of any treatment regime.