Three charged in Dunedin death

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Police investigating the death of a 23-year-old man whose body was found on a remote Otago beach on Friday have charged three men with murder.

The three, aged 17, 25 and 47, were arrested late yesterday and have been jointly charged with the murder of James Mathew Ellis.

Members of the Armed Offenders squad secured a Dunedin house where two of the three men were located.

The trio will appear in Dunedin District Court tomorrow.

Mr Ellis was found dead by two people out walking at the Blueskin Bay
Estuary on Friday morning.

Police launched a homicide investigation later that day and are today examining three properties - two in Dunedin and one in Oamaru - and
two vehicles.

Detective Senior Sergeant Kallum Croudis said the post-mortem revealed Mr Ellis died from injuries to his head.

"Police have found a weapon which they believe was involved in the man's death but are unable to give details of it at this stage," Mr Croudis said.

"They are keeping an open mind in respect of other weapons that might have been involved."

Mr Croudis said Mr Ellis had suffered "gruesome" blunt force trauma injuries to his head, hands and arms.

He said police still had a number of people to speak to but the investigation was progressing quickly.

"We are still trying to locate witnesses who attended a gathering at an Oamaru address overnight on Thursday and early Friday morning.

"Both Mr Ellis and the three men facing charges appear to have been at the address."

Mr Ellis had been living in Oamaru and was estranged from his family in a small North Island town. He was identified by a tattoo.

Geraldine Tait, a community board member in Warrington, said the community had been shocked to hear of the homicide.

- NZHERALD STAFF