Suspicious fire at West Auckland house linked to homicide investigation

Fire crews are at a house fire in Whenuapai - where a man died last year. Photo / Hayden Woodward

A suspicious fire has broken out at a West Auckland house at the centre of a homicide investigation.

Emergency services, police and fire crews are at the property on Trig Rd, Whenuapai, after reports of a blaze about 9.30am.

Coubin Arerua Tamatoa-Makaea, 31, died from injuries he suffered at the property in August last year.

Northern fire communications confirmed the fire was being treated as suspicious and that fire investigators were now at the scene to determine the circumstances surrounding it.

A spokesman said the property was made up of two buildings attached to each other. At its height, one of those buildings was "well involved" in fire.

By 11am, it was out, he said.

"There's a little bit of smoke still. We've got three crews out there now. We had seven initially."

Police have also arrived at the scene, a spokesman told the Herald.

This is not the first time fire crews have been called to the property. Since the death, the house has caught fire at least two times.

Tamatoa-Makaea, who grew up in West Auckland, died at the scene despite efforts from emergency services to save him.

Isaac Allen Harnwell has pleaded not guilty to his murder and the case will go to trial in August.