The property where Braydon Hepworth’s body was found. Photo \/ Jazlyn Whales<\/p>\n
Police are now waiting on further test results which they hope will shed more light on what happened to him.<\/p>\n
A 60-year-old man has been charged with making a false statement to police and \u201cimproperly offering an indignity\u201d to a dead human body. <\/p>\n
The alleged offender appeared in court briefly on Saturday morning.<\/p>\n
He was granted interim name suppression and remanded in custody until his next court appearance on October 29.<\/p>\n
The police investigation into Hepworth\u2019s death is ongoing. <\/p>\n
Last week the source described the case as \u201ccomplex\u201d and said it would take some time to piece together Hepworth\u2019s final moments and what happened after he died. <\/p>\n
Hepworth\u2019s last known address was a boarding house just 100m from where his body was found. <\/p>\n
Police also searched that property last week. <\/p>\n
Hepworth, who had diabetes and relied on daily medication, had also spent time living at the Christchurch City Mission. <\/p>\n
One of the last known images of Braydon Hepworth. Photo \/ NZ Police<\/p>\n
City Missioner Corinne Haines said today that she was \u201cdeeply saddened\u201d to learn about Hepworth\u2019s death. <\/p>\n
\u201cBraydon was supported by the Christchurch City Mission until he left our transitional accommodation in mid-July, and this news has been particularly difficult for a number of our staff who came to know and care for him,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThroughout the time Braydon was with us, we sought to provide him with care, stability and support, while also recognising our responsibility to provide a safe and supportive environment for all those using our services.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe offered Braydon a place in our transitional housing facility, which supports single adult men and women as they work towards more permanent social or private housing.\u201c<\/p>\n
Haines said when a person was in the \u201ccare\u201d of the City Mission they were \u201cconnected with a range of support services\u201d and participated in \u201cpersonal development programmes\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur transitional housing is a communal environment and is generally intended to provide support for up to 90 days. In Braydon\u2019s case, we extended his stay for considerably longer because we believed the additional time and support would benefit him,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
THe property where Hepworth’s body was found in Christchurch. Photo \/ Google<\/p>\n
Haines said claims that Hepworth was required to leave transitional housing \u201cbecause his room was untidy\u201d was \u201cnot an accurate representation of what occurred\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur services support many people with complex needs, and there are occasions when we must ask someone to leave accommodation because important behavioural expectations have repeatedly not been met,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThese decisions are not made lightly and must take into account the wellbeing and safety of the individual concerned, other residents and our staff. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhen someone leaves our transitional housing service, we look to offer other accommodation options such our emergency accommodation, and our navigators also seek to maintain contact with and offer support to those who are asked to leave.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis further support was extended to Braydon. Out of respect for Braydon\u2019s privacy, we do not intend to comment further on his specific circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n
Haines extended her \u201cdeepest sympathies\u201d to Hepworth\u2019s family.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd to all those who knew and cared about him, we are deeply sorry for their loss,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are also grateful that, during the period Braydon was with the City Mission, we were able to provide him with accommodation, care and support.\u201d<\/p>\n
Braydon Hepworth was last seen in Christchurch on September 3. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
Haines was confident in the current team at the City Mission and \u201cin the professional standard of care they provide\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur clients often have significant and complex needs, and our aim is to combine professional practice with the personal care, dignity and compassion that have always been at the heart of the Christchurch City Mission,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
Two Givealittle pages have been set up to help Hepworth\u2019s family. One has been set up by a friend of his mother to \u201chelp take some of that financial stress off \u2026 while trying to navigate through this tragic time of her life\u201d.<\/p>\n
More than $1200 has been donated so far. <\/p>\n
Another has been set up by Hepworth\u2019s father to help pay for his eventual headstone. So far, $925 has been donated. <\/p>\n
Hepworth\u2019s family are yet to speak about his death. <\/p>\n
Over the weekend, the grandfather of Hepworth\u2019s 9-month-old daughter posted a heartfelt final message to the 21-year-old on social media. <\/p>\n
\u201cI need to let you know how much you meant to us,\u201d he wrote in a letter to Hepworth. <\/p>\n
\u201cI want to thank you for coming into our lives and becoming such a special part of our family.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we first met you, you were a very quiet young man. You kept to yourself, and it took time for you to open up. But as the days went by, that silence slowly turned into a voice, your confidence grew, and we got to see the beautiful person you truly were.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe welcomed you into our family with open arms. We helped you learn to cook, clean, get things organised, and navigate life\u2019s challenges. We supported you in so many ways, but what you may never have realised is just how much you gave back to us in return.\u201d<\/p>\n
Braydon Hepworth. Photo \/ NZ Police<\/p>\n
He said Hepworth \u201cbecame a symbol of strength, love, courage, and support\u201d within the family.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour smile could light up a room, and your presence brought something special into our home that words can never fully explain,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou weren\u2019t just someone who came into our lives. You became family. You became one of our own. You became someone we loved deeply.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said the last time he saw Hepworth, the 21-year-old was \u201chaving such a wonderful time\u201d at a family party. <\/p>\n
\u201cTalking with family, running around with all the kids, laughing, joking, and being your bright, bubbly, excited self. Seeing you happy that day is a memory I\u2019ll treasure forever,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cLittle did we know how precious that moment would become.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt breaks my heart knowing that the future we imagined has changed forever. There were still so many moments we wanted to share with you, so many laughs left to have, and so many memories we thought we still had time to make.\u201d<\/p>\n
He thanked Hepworth for his kindness, love, laughter and \u201cevery single memory\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope you knew how loved you were. I hope you understood that you always had a place in our family, and that no matter what life threw at you, you mattered to us more than words could ever explain,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI wish we could have had more time \u2026 I wish we could have one more conversation, one more laugh, one more moment with you.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe love you to the moon and back, Braydon. Today, tomorrow, and for all the days that follow. No amount of time, no distance, and no heartbreak will ever erase the memories we have of you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anna Leask is a senior journalist who covers Christchurch issues and national crime and justice. She joined the Herald in 2008 and has worked as a journalist for more than 20 years with a particular focus on family and gender-based violence, child abuse, sexual violence and homicides. 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":"The property where Braydon Hepworth’s body was found. Photo \/ Jazlyn Whales Police are now waiting on further…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":629006,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[1443,74,5831,7800,301658,4487,181,2026,58276,15356,2209,9064,305,42,229621,308705,685,4486,130,117,43,1118,10715,7812,131,40,38,41,39,4741],"class_list":["post-629005","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-about","tag-after","tag-alive","tag-body","tag-braydon","tag-christchurch","tag-details","tag-discovery","tag-emerge","tag-emerged","tag-father","tag-fathers","tag-have","tag-headlines","tag-hepworth","tag-hepworths","tag-last","tag-month","tag-more","tag-new","tag-news","tag-of","tag-remains","tag-seen","tag-than","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-young"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/629005","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=629005"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/629005\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/629006"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=629005"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=629005"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=629005"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}