Anaru Moana spent the last few weeks of his life at his mother Tina\u2019s side as cancer took her life. <\/p>\n
\u201cCurrently dealing with my mum being in a hospice, so I said f*** cancer, I\u2019m coming to stay with you at the hospice,\u201d he posted on Facebook on December 12, 2021. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf you have a mum, just get in that quality time because tomorrow is never promised to anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eight days later, in the early hours of the morning, Tina took her last breath.<\/p>\n
And hours later, Anaru Moana took his. <\/p>\n
But for almost a year, no one knew where, how or why. <\/p>\n
Anaru Moana’s family raised the alarm after he did not show up at his mother’s funeral. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
Moana was last seen at 6.30am on the day of his mother\u2019s death. <\/p>\n
He was close to her and at the start his disappearance didn\u2019t raise any red flags. Maybe he just needed some space, time to process his loss.<\/p>\n
But when he did not show up at Tina\u2019s funeral two days later his family knew something was wrong. <\/p>\n
Moana was reported missing and local police carried out the usual inquiries \u2013 speaking to his family and associates, checking with his bank and cellphone provider and other agencies. <\/p>\n
His accounts had not been touched. His phone, not used for days. <\/p>\n
Detectives were called in and soon after a homicide investigation was announced. <\/p>\n
\u201cConcerns were raised when his family realised that he hadn\u2019t turned up at his mother\u2019s funeral and when nobody could get hold of him,\u201d Detective Inspector Joel Syme, who led the investigation, said. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was very out of character because he was very close to her. He loved her dearly. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn January 2022 we also had some media appeals that went out asking for sightings of Anaru. And it was around that time that it was also established that Anaru and an associate had been suspected of being involved in the theft of some methamphetamine and cash from a vehicle in Oamaru back in September. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then it was also discovered that the associate who was believed to have been with him at that time had been subjected to a really nasty, serious assault a few weeks after the theft had occurred.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo when you sort of tie all that together, it became clear there was a motive for for the disappearance of Anaru. Once this new information had come to light we then started to form the belief that he had potentially been the victim of foul play. And that is when the missing person inquiry became a homicide investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n
In September, Moana pinched a bag full of methamphetamine and cash out of a car in Oamaru. The haul was worth about $60,000 in total. <\/p>\n
Heremaia Repia-King was with Moana at the time but maintains he played no part in the theft. <\/p>\n
A few weeks later, Repia-King was confronted by a group of masked men and hauled into the backseat of a car. <\/p>\n
The body of Anaru Moana has not been found but police say they will continue looking if fresh information comes to light. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
His hands were bound with cable ties and he was assaulted \u2013 punched, elbowed and stabbed in the thigh and arm. <\/p>\n
The men asked him, \u201cWhere the f*** is your mate Anaru?\u201d then told him he had 16 weeks to pay them the $60,000 before dropping him in a gravel pit. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe big thing was obviously, once we were aware that there was a potential motivation for [Moana] to have been killed, was establishing his last known whereabouts,\u201d Syme said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe were all working together to determine when and where and how Anaru died, and where his body was and who was responsible for his murder.<\/p>\n
\u201cRegardless of the potential reasons behind his murder, it was important for us as the investigation team to focus on the fact that he was a loved son, brother, father and nephew \u2013 and his wh\u0101nau, as in every wh\u0101nau, has the right to know what had happened to their loved one, have them returned and have those responsible held to account.\u201d<\/p>\n
Police searching an area known as Bortons Pond on the Waitaki River as part of the homicide investigation. Photo \/ NZ Police<\/p>\n
Investigators ascertained that soon after Tina died, Moana reached out to a contact hoping to obtain drugs. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then we believe that he was taken up to Kelceys Bush by an associate on the pretence of smoking some methamphetamine. Once he\u2019s been up there, he\u2019s been attacked,\u201d Syme said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe believe that he has managed to escape up a tree. We believe that Anaru has been shot at while he\u2019s been up in a tree and then later assaulted and died as a result of that assault.\u201d<\/p>\n
Syme described the homicide investigation as \u201cvery long\u201d. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe initial part of the investigation was centred around his last movements, the last people he had interaction with.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe next part of that is actually looking at those who we suspect are involved in that assault on him and ultimately his murder \u2013 finding out everything we can about them and then looking at opportunities to gather evidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were a number of things that happened. From some cellphone data that we were able to retrieve, we believe that Anaru was put into the boot of a car and driven around the greater Waitaki and North Otago area for some time. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe vehicle that he was in was actually brought back to an address in Oamaru, where it stayed for some 24 hours. We then believe that vehicle was picked up again and that Anaru was put into the river.\u201d<\/p>\n
In November 2022, Syme announced investigators were focusing on the Waihao Box area. A silver Subaru had been found burnt out there two days after Moana was last seen. <\/p>\n
The National Dive Squad was called in to search the water nearby. <\/p>\n
Police released photos of Anaru Moana’s burnt out car after he went missing. Photo \/ NZ Police<\/p>\n
Days later Hayden Burt and Aaron Boden were arrested and charged with Moana\u2019s murder. <\/p>\n
In July 2024, Cody Boyes was arrested. And in March 2025, his sister, Korina Boyes, became the fourth person charged with murder. <\/p>\n
The group went on trial in the High Court at Christchurch before Justice Christine Gordon in September this year. <\/p>\n
Earlier today, a jury unanimously found Burt, Boden and Cody Boyes guilty of murder. <\/p>\n
Korina Boyes was found not guilty of murder and the lesser alternative charge of manslaughter. <\/p>\n
She was found guilty of one charge of injuring with intent. <\/p>\n
All four offenders will be sentenced in December.<\/p>\n
Defendants Aaron Boden (left), Hayden Burt and siblings Cody Boyes and Korina Boyes. Photo \/ George Heard<\/p>\n
Murder prosecutions in New Zealand where bodies have not been found are rare. <\/p>\n
The most recent was David Benbow, convicted in 2023 of murdering his childhood friend Michael McGrath, who vanished from his Christchurch home in 2017. <\/p>\n
In 1999, Scott Watson was jailed for the murders of Ben Smart and Olivia Hope, who disappeared after a New Year\u2019s Eve party in the Marlborough Sounds. <\/p>\n
David Tamihere was convicted in 1990 of killing Swedish tourists Sven H\u00f6glin and Heidi Paakkonen \u2013 the latter\u2019s body has never been recovered \u2013 and George Cecil Horry was found guilty in 1951 of murdering his wife Eileen Jones, who had been missing since 1942.<\/p>\n
\u201cOften, the body can be the starting point of an investigation and, and we go from there. So certainly, a case like this is rare, but it hasn\u2019t really hindered our ability to hold those responsible to account,\u201d Syme said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhile it might have been quicker and less challenging to progress an investigation if we had found Anaru\u2019s body, it\u2019s really the impact on the family that is the main challenging factor \u2013 and we carry that burden.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe violent death of a family member is something that no family should have to endure, but add to that the fact that they haven\u2019t been able to bury or farewell or pay respects to their loved one and have them returned is sort of beyond comprehension. And the whole investigation team feels this, and that\u2019s why we\u2019ve done such extensive searching to date.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anaru Moana has been described as a “much-loved family member”. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
Syme said he was \u201cextremely proud\u201d of the investigation team for their work on the case. <\/p>\n
\u201cWithout wanting to sound cliche, it was just solid, hard detective work and using every available tool that we\u2019ve got to actually gather the evidence. This team has worked together with real determination to get us into a position where we are today,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn every homicide investigation, one of the main objectives is being able to return loved ones to their wh\u0101nau and friends, so it is gutting really for all of us involved to have not been able to do that, as yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Syme said the team was still committed to finding Moana\u2019s body and while extensive searches had already been carried out, if new information was provided to police about more specific locations worth looking at \u2013 they would act on it. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m always hopeful that we\u2019re going to be able to return Anaru to his family, but as time passes we\u2019ve got to be realistic and say that becomes more unlikely,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve searched what we can so we would need evidence to suggest he\u2019s in a particular location, or still likely in a location, for us to do more searching. But we would certainly do that because we\u2019re still committed to returning him to his loved ones.\u201d<\/p>\n
Syme said all of those involved in Moana\u2019s death had been put before the courts but there may be others with information that could help police find his body. <\/p>\n
\u201cMy message to those people would be to actually think about the impact. If they were in that same position as Anaru\u2019s family, what would it mean to them to not be able to have their loved one returned to them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Anaru Moana stole methamphetamine and cash from a car months before his disappearance. Police believe he was murdered. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
\u201cI just urge them to come forward to police if they did hold information or evidence that they believed would help us identify where he is\u2026 we\u2019re always going to investigate any new information that comes in that could potentially lead to locating his body and us being able to return him to his wh\u0101nau.\u201d<\/p>\n
The fact Moana was no angel has not been kept secret. He had gang connections. He did not have a clean record. <\/p>\n
But Syme said that did not matter to the investigation team. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnaru was and still is a father, a brother, a much-loved family member to a lot of people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s obviously led an interesting life and he\u2019s been involved in certain activity some members of society might not agree with, but the important thing for us is to focus on what he meant to those around him and those who were loved by him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhether somebody\u2019s got a criminal past or not doesn\u2019t change the way we tackle an investigation or how we investigate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anna Leask is a senior journalist who covers national crime and justice. She joined the Herald in 2008 and has worked as a journalist for 19 years with a particular focus on family and gender-based violence, child abuse, sexual violence, homicides, mental health and youth crime. She writes, hosts and produces the award-winning podcast A Moment In Crime, released monthly on nzherald.co.nz<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Anaru Moana spent the last few weeks of his life at his mother Tina\u2019s side as cancer took…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":120422,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[2851,45451,95,31468,10748,11773,6179,2209,26524,1345,2944,12898,9066,1362,6501,41654,6178,43768,13631,111,43,139,69,4517,4514,22639,223,6506,102,40244],"class_list":["post-120421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-zealand","tag-also","tag-anaru","tag-and","tag-brother","tag-came","tag-deeply","tag-died","tag-father","tag-funeral","tag-home","tag-inside","tag-investigation","tag-loved","tag-made","tag-missing","tag-moana","tag-mother","tag-murdered","tag-never","tag-new-zealand","tag-news","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-past","tag-same","tag-son","tag-the","tag-vanished","tag-with","tag-yes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120421","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=120421"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120421\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/120422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}