Pauper's grave awaits solitary man

By ELIZABETH BINNING

A Rotorua man will receive a pauper's burial if no one claims his body from the hospital morgue in the next few days.

Lindsay Mark Pedlar died suddenly on August 18 and police have been unable to find any friends or family to take responsibility for his body.

It is believed the 50-year-old, who lived in Ewert St, was married many years ago but his wife is no longer in the country.

There are no known children or relatives in New Zealand.

Rotorua Hospital spokeswoman Sue Wilkie said Mr Pedlar's body had been available for collection since an autopsy was completed a week ago, but no one had come forward.

Police were called in to help but also had no luck.

Yesterday, police asked the hospital to hold the body for another three days so they could go public in the hope of finding someone who knew Mr Pedlar.

So far there has been no response.

If no one comes forward, the hospital is expected to arrange a pauper's burial at the local public cemetery.

Graham Resnick, manager of Waikumete Cemetery in Auckland, which is one of the largest in the Southern Hemisphere, said unclaimed bodies were common during the 1960s when there were many boarding houses.

But with better ways of tracing friends and family today, unclaimed bodies were relatively rare.

"I have been at Waikumete for about five years and in that time I think we have had about one case where an application was made for a pauper's funeral," said Mr Resnick.

"In that case there were friends but no one was willing to pay for the funeral."

If Mr Pedlar's body was not claimed and no assets could be found to cover the burial costs, a funeral grant would probably be sought, Mr Resnick said.

Work and Income will pay up to $1569 towards funeral costs if they cannot be covered by friends, family or the dead person's estate.

In July, more than 450 funeral grants were paid, averaging about $1500 each.* Police in Auckland are also having trouble contacting anyone who knows an Asian man who died at the Newmarket Railway Station on August 8.

The man was carrying New Zealand and Hong Kong currency but no formal identification.