KEY POINTS:
Friends and family gathered in Napier today to bury Stephen Bellingham, the man shot by a police officer in Christchurch last month.
His uncle, John Trischler, and Mr Bellingham's best friend, Jason Heaven, spoke at the service at St Mary's Church in Taradale.
Mr Trischler said the service was "very, very lovely".
"We celebrated Stephen's life the way he would have liked it to be celebrated," he said. The final committal was at a local cemetery.
Mr Trischler said the family wanted to thank the media for being understanding and giving the family space at the funeral.
The family was not commenting on the circumstances surrounding Mr Bellingham's death until the facts were known and investigations into it were completed.
"The family would rather let the inquiries take their natural course and when we have all the facts then maybe the family may have comment," he said.
The Truth newspaper today named the officer who shot Mr Bellingham prompting a strong response from the police.
"On the general issue of media seeking to name individual officers involved in serious incidents, police have long realised that to suppress such publications has become virtually impossible," Deputy Commissioner Rob Pope said.
"Mainstream media have acted responsibly by not naming the officer. It is unfortunate that what has become a sensationalist fringe publication has named an individual.
"We think that most members of the public will be disgusted at Truth's actions."
Police have said Mr Bellingham was shot as he advanced on the officer with the hammer held over his head in a threatening manner in Stanmore Road, Christchurch, on September 26.
Police have 40 officers working on the case. A homicide inquiry and an independent Police Complaints Authority inquiry are under way.
The focus of the homicide inquiry has been a door-to-door canvass of properties in the Stanmore Road, Avonside Drive and Armagh Street areas.
Police asked anyone in the area who had not yet been spoken to by police to contact the inquiry base on (03) 363 7620.
- NZPA
