Fire service veteran as much a mystery man in death as in life

Anthony Stanlake

Owhiro Bay is no stranger to death.

A rugged, isolated area on Wellington's south coast, it stares right into the heart of Cook Strait. The Cyrus, the Progress, the Wellington and the Yung Pen vessels lie within its waters. The resting places of many other sunken wrecks are nearby, on what is known as the Shipwreck Coast.

The grey waters of Owhiro Bay often wash up flotsam for discovery by the many walkers, cyclists and four-wheel-drive enthusiasts who use the popular walking track from the Bay to the Red Rocks seal colony. But few beachcombers have made a discovery as bizarre and horrifying as that made by a walker early on last Sunday morning.

Finding the half-naked body of a 62-year-old man would be disturbing enough, but with its battered head, evidence of an attempted decapitation and - most grisly of all - its missing hands, this was a crime scene which even hardened police officers admitted tested their nerves.

This strange death saw a major police search launched for clues to the identity of the mystery man and into how and why he met such a gruesome fate. The case looked like a whodunnit which would keep the police baffled for days, but investigations have whistled by as swiftly as the southerly storms which have blown into Owhiro Bay as forensic teams scrambled to collect evidence before the tide took it away.

A call to a police information hotline on Sunday night was the first indication that the body might be that of Anthony Stanlake, but it was not the first time Wellington central police station staff had dealt with the former fire officer. The Karori man, who had turned to property development after more than 20 years with the Fire Service, had once worked in the station as a volunteer for Victim Support. He also had two cannabis-related convictions.

Owhiro Bay is a windy 20-minute drive from Mr Stanlake's Karori home. The last known sighting of Mr Stanlake was on Thursday, July 6 at a Newtown hardware store - roughly halfway between the two. Police have found a receipt for the ballcock Mr Stanlake bought at his home, but are still trying to piece together his movements after his shopping expedition, and how that path took him from Karori to a south coast beach.

Someone who came to Owhiro Bay from further afield than Mr Stanlake is the man accused of killing him. Early on in the inquiry police revealed they were desperate to find the driver of a Subaru Legacy whom Owhiro Bay locals helped rescue after the car got bogged down on the shoreline on Saturday afternoon.

The car was eventually found in far-off Wainuiomata - a village suburb behind the Hutt Valley's hills - on Wednesday night. A man was arrested later that night on Taranaki St in central Wellington.

Police have said the man was known to Mr Stanlake, but not explained how.

The 21-year-old, whose address on court documents was the Lower Hutt suburb of Naenae, appeared in court on Thursday. He has interim name suppression and a top Wellington defence lawyer, Greg King, is representing him.

The man did not enter a plea, but Mr King said he would deny the charges. He also lambasted the large media contingent in the courtroom for inquiring into Mr Stanlake's life and said continuing to do so could jeopardise his client's right to a fair trial.

Ironically, little is known about Anthony Stanlake, who in some ways remains as much a mystery man as he did on Sunday.

His public service is on the record, as is his brush with the law, but both police and reporters have struggled to find anyone to give further insights.

The mother of his two daughters and son is dead, as is the son himself. Only one family member lives in New Zealand, and Mr Stanlake's estranged wife is overseas. The woman police call his companion - the woman who missed her daily telephone calls from the man she recently holidayed with in China and called police on Sunday night - has not spoken publicly.

Police have worked 16-20 hour days to try to find his killer.

This weekend they are working on nine different sites throughout Wellington as they salvage clues into a case which, but for tide, could have been another story hidden under the Owhiro Bay waves.