Miramar homicide: Arrest after five months

Ms Fan's children, aged 8 and 9, and family have been told of the arrest.

A man has been charged with the murder of Wellington mother-of-two Mei Fan.

The 59-year-old man was arrested at his home yesterday after a five-month investigation into Ms Fan's death in November.

Investigations manager Detective Senior Sergeant John van den Heuvel said of the case: "It has been challenging in the sense that the killer took steps to avoid being detected, and those challenges have taken some time to overcome."

Mr van den Heuvel said that Ms Fan's children, aged 8 and 9, and family had been told of the arrest.

"We have advised Mei's children and the family in China of the arrest. Police and victim support are working with Mei's children."

The news has come as a relief to Ms Fan's boyfriend, Tani Hoyhtya, who said he lost his perfect woman "in such a horrible way".

Mr Hoyhtya, who works for the United Nations, told the Herald from Vietnam last night that the arrest was "extremely good".

"It's happy news. I have been waiting for so long."

The couple met in China in 2011. He had decided he would propose to Ms Fan and was moving to New Zealand "to start a family" with her, he said. His move in September would now be bitter-sweet, he said.

"Every day I miss her ... I like to remember the good relationship she gave me. She was the woman ... I loved the most."