Murdered hitchiker's backpacks found by lake

Members of the Taranaki search-and-rescue team use kayaks to search the Lake Rotokare shoreline for evidence. Picture / NZPA

Police are still refusing to publicly name a man wanted in connection with the Birgit Brauer murder case but say they are doing their "utmost" to find the young woman's killer.

A significant breakthrough in the case came yesterday when police found the 28-year-old's backpacks wrapped in a sleeping bag by the edge of Lake Rotokare, near Eltham.

The discovery came after an abandoned Toyota Hilux - similar to the one Ms Brauer was last seen getting into - was found in the Ohau River near Levin last Wednesday.

The 4WD was stolen six weeks ago by a man whose name and description has been known by police for some time. His failure to come forward - despite pleas to do so - makes him a crucial person police need to speak to in the murder investigation.

Inquiry head Detective Senior Sergeant Grant Coward said police were actively trying to find the man but would not name him for "reasons of legal integrity".

Mr Coward would only say there was a killer on the loose and police were doing their "utmost to find that person".

The police tactics are unusual. In many other high-profile cases police name people they want to speak to without having to call them suspects.

They frequently release the names and pictures to the media of people "who are wanted in connection" with a crime, even if there is no evidence to suggest they are directly involved.

Journalists Training Organisation executive director Jim Tucker said there were reasons police did not name possible suspects but it was not common in a high-profile murder case.

"You just don't know what the cops know," he said. "They will have a reason for it and I guess that will come out at the trial ...

"It's not usual but the thing is with murder inquiries nothing would ever surprise me," he said.

In some cases police will not name a suspect if an arrest is imminent for fear of jeopardising the case or an application for name suppression.

The 4WD discovered last week was reported stolen on August 26 by its owner, Brent Cleverley.

He told police it was taken by one of his employees - a woodcutter in his mid-30s who has not been seen since the vehicle was taken.

Results of forensic tests on the 4WD - which will confirm if the vehicle is the one police are seeking - are due in the next few days.

Ms Brauer was seen getting into a Hilux on September 23.

Her stabbed and beaten body was found dumped at Lucys Gully later that day.

Yesterday, police found her personal belongings stashed on the shores of Lake Rotokare.

Police divers and a search team scoured the area after a member of the public reported seeing a Hilux matching the description of the one police were seeking three days after the murder.

Mr Coward said a letter addressed to Ms Brauer was found near the packs, which have been sent for forensic testing.

He described the find as a significant breakthrough.

* Anyone with further information or sightings of the Hilux can contact 0800 CRIMESTOP / 0800 274-637.