A handwritten note said: “Gone for walk. Mt Davy to Mt Sewell. Back tonight or tomorrow morning”.
After finding the note, a concerned neighbour raised the alarm at 12pm the next day.
Rescuers have since been out in force.
On Monday, a picture was released of Arbon riding a red bike and carrying a backpack, heading from Runanga to the Mt Davy area early on Wednesday morning.
Roy Arbon was seen heading from Rūnanga to the Mt Davy area on a red bike. Photo / Police
The bike was found on Rewanui Rd.
On July 28, the rescue team got a lead after Arbon’s phone pinpointed his last position.
It showed that on Thursday afternoon, a south-bound Arbon was in an open area, about one kilometre north of Sewell Peak’s repeater and two kilometres south of Mount Davy.
Searches have since focused their efforts on this location.
Senior Sergeant Mark Kirkwood said 12 minutes after the phone “pinged”, a police sergeant flew over the exact location in a helicopter, videoing the search area.
Roy Arbon is a former alpine climber who made his money drilling for oil in the North Sea. Photo / Loading Docs
“When we reviewed the footage, we couldn’t find any sign of Mr Arbon in it.
“We know his phone was absolutely in that area, and we know the polling is right - you get perfect reception up there because you’re right by the repeater,” Kirkwood said.
“In this area, you’re a good distance from the cover of bush, and it would’ve been a struggle for him to walk that far that fast.
“We have spoken to two people who walked the same route in the same direction, and they didn’t see him. It’s really odd.”
Kirkwood said that more than 750 search hours have been spent by the ground teams alone.
Police are appealing for sightings of 75-year-old Roy Arbon after he failed to return from a walk from Mt Davy to Mt Sewell, north-east of Greymouth, on Wednesday.
“The search team is pretty flat, we don’t like not being able to return someone home.
“We’ve had 18 people in an extended line looking for anything that will lead us to him, but there’s been nothing, it’s unusual.”
Teams made up of police staff, Land Search and Rescue personnel, and canines have been doing their utmost, but days of “nothing” have followed.
“The community response has been fantastic, locals have been offering us support and someone offered us the use of their helicopter. It’s been outstanding, as usual. People really care about each other.”
Kirkwood said two Search and Rescue (SAR) experts will carry out a review of the search, on top of one that had been completed by the Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB).
Reviews are a normal part of the search process and are carried out by people who weren’t part of the initial search.
