'He did not deserve to be killed': Family say dead man will be 'dearly missed'

Messages and a bible reading were scrawled on a piece of plywood covering the smashed door to the St Clair flat linked to an alleged murder. Photo / ODT

The family of a man who was allegedly murdered in Dunedin say he will be dearly missed and did not deserve to die that way.

The body of Brent Andrew Bacon was found near a gravel road north of Waitati on Monday evening, the day after police and forensic experts converged on a crime scene at a recently abandoned flat in St Clair.

John Kenneth Collins (37) was charged with murder and Aleisha Cherie Dawson (30) stood accused as an accessory in the Rotorua District Court on Thursday afternoon.

Speaking to the Otago Daily Times yesterday, a family spokeswoman said Bacon was a father, brother, son, cousin, uncle, nephew and workmate.

"He will be dearly, dearly missed, and he did not deserve to be killed.

"We love him.''

The spokeswoman said Bacon was known to the pair and the alleged killing was not a random act.

"It was their problem, not his.''

Family members gathered at a home in Dunedin yesterday.

"He didn't deserve to die that way,'' another family member said.

Meanwhile, the tents and police crime scene tape have come down at the Housing New Zealand property in Lock St, St Clair.

But residents remain on edge.

A woman who was one of two people to discover the crime scene inside the flat said she remained deeply shaken.

"I can't sleep, I can barely eat. Every time I close my eyes I can see it.''

Heartfelt messages, some religious, were scrawled on a piece of plywood covering the smashed door to the flat.

"Big brother Bing I love you,'' read one.

"Be free to fly with the angels.''

The accused pair were arrested in Rotorua late on Wednesday afternoon.

Collins faces one charge of murder and another of unlawfully taking a motor vehicle.

He was remanded in custody without plea until his next appearance on March 5 in the High Court at Dunedin.

Dawson faces charges of accessory to murder after the fact, unlawfully taking a motor vehicle and two charges of attempting to use bank cards to obtain pecuniary advantage.

Police have reiterated their earlier plea for sightings of a dark blue 1995 Toyota Emina people mover, driven from Dunedin to Picton early on February 5, and since found in Picton.

That same Tuesday, a missing person was reported in relation to the Lock St property.

The pair had been of interest to police since the investigation began on Sunday night and officers were not seeking anyone else.

There was no suggestion the alleged killing was gang-related, but police would not speculate on whether drugs or the drug trade were involved.

The area in which the body was discovered is close to Waitati, which led to speculation it was connected to the recent stabbing attack on a miniature horse in the seaside township, but police quashed any suggestion of a link.

Dunedin police (03) 471-4800, Crimestoppers 0800 555-111.