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A man who allegedly murdered a father of three whose dismembered body was found inside the boot of his car can now be named.
Richard Leman’s body was found inside his own car, parked in a garage in Tyler St, Rangiora, on April 17. Police then began a homicide inquiry.
The Herald earlier revealed Leman’s body was dismembered and that when police found him, his torso was in the boot of his car with several parts of his body missing. It is believed he was shot.
A suppression hearing was recently held in the High Court at Christchurch regarding the two people charged in relation to his murder.
Justice Peter Churchman dismissed both applications, allowing the Herald to reveal the 38-year-old woman facing a charge of accessory to murder after the fact is Rangiora resident Morgan Grant. Grant pleaded not guilty to the charge at her first appearance in the High Court.
On Friday, suppression lapsed for the alleged killer, Michael Scott Rodger.
Rodger has pleaded not guilty to murdering Leman via his lawyer Ethan Huda.
Richard Leman's body was found dismembered inside the boot of his car on April 17. Parts of his body remain missing. Photo / George Heard
Detective Senior Sergeant Tania Jellyman earlier said police were able to confirm, with the blessing of Leman’s family, that some of his remains have not been recovered.
Richard Leman's sister says he was a beloved brother, son, and father to three boys.
“We are releasing these details in the hope that we can provide some closure for Richard’s family,” she said.
“We are not in a position to provide any further information in relation to this; however, this is understandably very distressing for Richard’s family.
“We would like to be able to recover the missing remains so his family can move forward from this tragedy.”
While one person had been charged with murder, police believed others were involved in his death.
“We have every confidence that someone in the Rangiora community knows what has happened here. We are urging you to do the right thing and come forward to speak to us.”
Michael Scott Rodger is charged with murdering Richard Leman.
Leman’s sister, Nicky Leman, told the Herald after the man’s arrest that the seven weeks since her brother first went missing until the arrest had been “total fear”.
“I haven’t been sleeping, I’ve been getting up throughout the night checking my windows and doors and making sure all my children are in bed safe, it’s like I have not been sleeping. We’re all like that, we’re all a mess, all of us.
“We had no idea what was going on because the police don’t tell you anything because they’ve got an investigation to do and then you don’t want to know because you don’t want to jeopardise anything, so it’s been a catch-22 situation. We want to know but then we don’t because we don’t want to compromise anything. If we talk to the wrong person we don’t want anything compromised because we want justice for Richard.”
Leman was a beloved brother, son, and father to three boys - “his babies”, Nicky Leman said.
“He was a funny guy, he made us laugh when we were down, he put a smile on our face. That was just Richard.”
Police searched Morgan Grant's home twice in relation to the investigation. Photo / George Heard
She said the family had “no clue” why someone would want to harm Leman.
“Richard was friends with everybody, that was how he was. If you were down, you could’ve been a complete stranger and if you were on the side of the road and if you were upset or crying or whatever, he would stop and say, ‘are you all right?’ and give you a hug and say, ‘is there anything I can do to help you?’ That’s the kind of guy he was.
“Everyone was Richard’s friend, it was like he had an infectious personality where you just wanted to be around him.”
Nicky Leman said her parents were “not coping at all”. The couple also lost their oldest child to leukaemia, she said.
“I can’t come to terms with it, this is my little brother … every time I think about it I start to cry.”
She said the police had done an “amazing job” throughout their investigation.
“I think the police are amazing. They’ve been brilliant with my parents, because my parents are elderly and they’re very unwell, and just the way they’ve handled everything, I can’t speak highly enough of them.”
The family appealed to anyone who still had information they had not disclosed to speak up.
Police could be seen with a ground-penetrating radar device at a property in Rangiora. Photo / George Heard
“If anybody knows anything, come forward to the police and give them the information so we can get justice for Richard and if there’s anybody else involved that the police get everybody involved, that’s it,” she said.
“The police are on the right track and they’re doing their job and they’re absolute in the course that they’re taking and that gives us comfort.”
Anyone with information can call 105 and quote file 230415/8026. Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.
Sam Sherwood is a Christchurch-based reporter who covers crime. He is a senior journalist who joined the Herald in 2022, and has worked as a journalist for 10 years.
