Man charged with murdering son

Police guard the house where Leonard Kingi was allegedly murdered by his father. Photo / File

A Whangarei man has been charged with murdering his son.

No plea was taken when Phillip James Beazley, 60, appeared in the Whangarei District Court yesterday on a charge of murder.

He is alleged to have killed his son, Leonard Nigel Kingi, 25, at a house in Balmoral Rd, Tikipunga, on January 26.

Police initially charged Beazley with assault pending a post-mortem examination that was conducted in Auckland.

Beazley appeared in court on the charge of assault on January 27 and was granted interim name suppression and remanded in custody.

He was again remanded in custody after yesterday's appearance until February 19 when he will appear in the High Court for a callover. The interim suppression order lapsed yesterday and his lawyer, Arthur Fairley, did not apply for bail.

Mr Kingi's death resulted in police launching the first homicide investigation in Northland this year.

Two St John ambulances were sent to the house to attend to an unconscious Mr Kingi but he was dead by the time they arrived. The scene was then handed over to police, who started an investigation dubbed Operation Tide.