Police search around farm fails to find murder clues

Police revealed yesterday that the latest search around the property of murdered Hawkes Bay farmer Jack Nicholas had failed to unearth any clues.

About a dozen police officers and civilians started scouring the area on Wednesday, but refused to say what prompted the search.

It was the latest in a series of searches in the past couple of weeks.

A helicopter equipped with heat-seeking equipment was used last week.

Meanwhile a 49-year-old Hawkes Bay man has been granted interim name suppression after appearing at Napier District Court on firearms charges laid by the police team investigating the murder of Mr Nicholas.

The man faced two charges of unlawfully possessing .308 rifles and one of possessing 18 rounds of ammunition.

One of the rifle charges also named another man, but he did not appear in court.

The charges were dated November 24, 2004, but were laid only last week.

The 49-year-old man entered no plea through his lawyer and was remanded on bail to reappear in court on April 6.

One of his bail conditions requires him to report to Napier Police Station each week.

The man made no comment to media waiting outside the courthouse.

Detective Inspector Godfrey Watson, who is heading the Nicholas murder inquiry, would not comment on whether the man was on the inquiry's suspect list.

Mr Nicholas was gunned down outside his farm at Puketitiri, 56km northwest of Napier, in August last year. A reward has been offered for information leading to the arrest of his killer or killers.

- NZPA