Another arrest as man farewelled

Police say the assault did not directly cause Lance Scullin's death.

Another arrest was made in relation to the assault on Lance Scullins on the same day friends and family farewelled the community hero.

A 19-year-old Merivale man will appear in court on Monday facing a charge of participating in an organised criminal group.

A farewell ceremony was held at the Merivale Community Centre at noon and was followed by the funeral at the Pyes Pa Crematorium Chapel at 2pm.

From 3.30pm a kai hakari (banquet) was held at the community centre to allow those who knew Mr Scullin to remember him together.

Mr Scullin, a security guard and community advocate, was found dead on his Kesteven Rd property on Sunday morning after he was assaulted with a fence paling while breaking up a gang fight the night before.

Police say the assault did not directly cause his death, but are waiting on further results from the post mortem.

Detective Senior Sergeant Greg Turner said police were still trying to track down the people involved in the fight. "They know we are looking for them.

"They are hiding. We've got four or five names."

"The other unfortunate thing is we'll probably stumble across them on Saturday or Sunday night and they'll probably have to stay in the can a bit longer than they usually would."

Earlier this week, police arrested a 32-year-old Tauranga man on Tuesday and charged him with assault with intent to injure, common assault, and participating in an organised criminal group.

His identity was suppressed and he was remanded in custody until December 10.