Sad stories behind the statistics

New Zealand has had 14 unsolved murders in the past 10 years, puzzles in which trails have run cold, clues are absent and motives are unknown.

Judith Ann Yorke, a 25-year-old Te Puke solo mother, vanished after attending a party in an orchard shed at Matapihi, south of Mt Maunganui, on October 21, 1992. The initial missing persons inquiry was stepped up to a murder one about November 14. About 25 people at the party have been interviewed. Ms Yorke left behind a daughter, Channel.

Kevin James O'Loughlin, 30, a self-employed carpenter, was stabbed several times. His body was found at the entrance of a Nelson carpark on May 2, 1993. Over the next 20 days, detectives interviewed more than 900 people, but were unable to find a motive, a suspect or a murder weapon. A $20,000 reward failed to solve the case.

Norrie Triggs, a 51-year-old computer programmer, was found by his landlady slumped against a chair in his Chartwell, Wellington, bedsit on February 8, 1994. Mr Triggs was well-known for his wide and varied relationships with women, and police believe a woman beat and killed him.

Joseph Gary Tuhi, an unemployed father of two, was last seen in June 1994 walking on State Highway 2 in the Mohaka area. Police believe he was murdered.

Stuart James Te Wano, a 21-year-old Mongrel Mob prospect, was shot twice. His body was found in a paddock near a gang shelter in the remote village of Hiruharama, 8km southwest of Ruatoria, on January 20, 1995. Detectives said within days that the case was a real whodunit and braced for a long inquiry.

Angela Maree Blackmoore, aged 21 and 10 weeks pregnant, died from multiple stab wounds. Her partner, Laurie Anderson, found her on the kitchen floor of her Christchurch home on August 17, 1995. Her 2-year-old son, Dylan, was asleep in bed at the time.

Elizabeth Marusich, a Parnell widow, lived as a recluse and was bashed on the back of the head. The 69-year-old's decomposed body was found in the Auckland Domain in October 1995.

John Thomas Reynolds, a 55-year-old scrap metal dealer, was found dead from head injuries in his Sydenham workshop on April 28, 1996. A $20,000 reward was posted in a bid to solve the case.

Claire Hills was abducted as she drove to her job at the Auckland Airport McDonald's shortly after 3 am on April 28, 1998. She was probably sexually assaulted before being burned alive in her car on Mangere Mountain. Police launched a renewed hunt for her killer last May and are examining new leads.

Lien Nguyen, a 35-year-old Vietnamese immigrant, was found by her husband on the living-room floor of their Otahuhu home on May 18, 1998. It is believed she opened the door to her attacker or attackers. She was strangled and her body stripped of jewellery.

Kayo Matsuzawa was a young Japanese tourist whose naked, decaying corpse was found inside a fire-alarm cupboard in the Centrecourt building in Queen St on September 22, 1998 - 10 days after she was last seen alive. The lack of forensic evidence has frustrated detectives.

David John Robinson was a 25-year-old itinerant found dead from a single bullet wound in his forehead on December 28, 1998, on a deserted beach at Kakapotahi, 50km south of Hokitika. Mr Robinson, formerly of Rotorua, had not contacted his family for eight years. He was last seen at a court appearance on November 11, 1998.

Kirsty Bentley, 15, disappeared on New Year's Eve 1998 near the Ashburton River Bridge. Her black Labrador, Abby, was left tied to a tree and her underpants and boxer shorts were found on the riverbank. Her body was later discovered in the Rakaia Gorge, 55km northeast of Ashburton. It is thought her killer is most likely a local person.

Lisa Ann Blakie, a 20-year-old Timaru woman, disappeared last February 2 after thumbing a ride from Yaldhurst, outside Christchurch, on her way to visit friends on the West Coast. Her body was found in a lonely western Canterbury mountain stream.

Note: Some high-profile cases are not on this list because police treated them as missing persons rather than murder victims. Homicide inquiries started over the past few weeks, such as the probe into the double Lundy murder in Palmerston North, are also not included.