Campbell Paterson of Napier. Photo / supplied via Facebook
His eldest son Elkanah was compelled to share a message with people on Facebook when insensitive comments about Mr Paterson's ta moko appeared online.
People commented that his ta moko represented gang connections, but Elkanah said Mr Paterson's moko "was his strength, his power, it is everything to him."
He said his father got his first moko when he was 19 years old and also had the phrase "Jah Rastafari" tattooed on his forehead.
Elkanah said the phrase meant God, and his father studied the Bible.
Messages like "Head high cousin, stay strong" and "I'm here for you and your whanau" appeared on the Facebook page of one of Mr Paterson's sons.
A family member told the Hawke's Bay Today on Friday that the family were coming to terms with Mr Paterson's death.
She said the family was "not willing to release a korero [statement] just yet".
"We are having a family get together tonight and will be talking about it [among] ourselves. It's obviously very difficult and sad for us right now, especially [for] Campbell's kids and wife."
Family of Mr Paterson refused to talk when approached today.
Cairns man David Leslie Hickson, 32, was charged with Mr Paterson's murder and interference with a corpse.
Far North Detective Inspector Bruno Asnicar said Mr Paterson and Hickson were previously known each other.
"We believed there were some suspicious circumstances around the potential this guy might be missing and we've launched it from there," he said.
"It really started as something really minor."
The Cairns Post reported two crime scenes were established at a single-storey house in Edmonton, a southern suburb of Cairns, and in dense bushland where a body had been located in a chilly bin.
Mr Asnicar said police were investigating whether Mr Paterson's body had been moved following his death and hoped nearby residents might be able to shed light on what happened.
He said detectives were using "a range of methods" to track the victim's final days.
"We worked back from there to work out who he had been associating with or who he had been doing business with prior to his disappearance," he said.
Detectives closed the crime scene early Friday morning, but investigations continued at Mr Hickson's residence in Edmonton.
"That's going to go for several days," Mr Asnicar said.
Police continued to door-knock residents around the area and have reissued a call for anyone with information to come forward, The Cairns Post reported.
Mr Asnicar said it was alleged a vehicle had been used to transport the body and the chilly bin to the bush area.
When the alleged murderer appeared in court on Thursday, the court was told Hickson had applied for legal aid and the matter will appear before the court again on December 17.
