KEY POINTS:
A Nelson man is to appear in court today charged with murder after another man with serious head injuries was found dead on the front lawn of his house in the city yesterday.
Nicholas William Winter, 26, an unemployed roofer of Nelson, was yesterday found dead about 10am by his partner in suburban Abraham Heights.
Police last night arrested a 20-year-old forestry worker and charged him with assault. The murder charge was laid this morning.
Detective Senior Sergeant Wayne McCoy of Nelson CIB said 20 police officers had been assigned to the case.
A police search team from Christchurch was also on the scene today, focusing on finding a weapon.
A passerby told police they saw a man holding a weapon near the scene. It was described to police, who believe it was thrown into nearby bushes.
Mr McCoy would not describe the alleged weapon, but said police "believed they have found the object used in the homicide" near the corner of Toi Toi St and Abraham Heights.
Although at this stage police were not looking for anyone else, Mr McCoy said inquiries were continuing and they would not rule out further arrests.
Mr Winter had spoken to a woman and left his house with her about 10.30pm on Sunday. He was not seen until he was found by his partner yesterday. Mr McCoy said the woman had come forward to police last night and had assisted in finding the accused.
She was not known to Mr Winter but knew the residents of the adjoining flat and the accused. He said there was no suggestion she was involved.
Mr Winter and the alleged offender also appeared to be unknown to each other.
Detective Inspector John Winter confirmed the attack had happened on the front lawn of the house and said it appeared the victim never left the property.
Nick Winter died from "significant head injuries".
His partner, the only other occupant of the flat, had not been concerned for his whereabouts because she had fallen asleep shortly after he left the house.
A post-mortem was due to be carried out by forensic pathologist Martin Sage today.
- NZPA
