Police pay their respects to Carmen

A canvas grid hidden deep in dense bush marks the spot from which police removed the dismembered remains of Carmen Thomas last night.

The Remuera woman's body had been dumped in plastic bins and buried in a shallow grave near a path in the Waitakere Ranges west of Auckland.

Just a few metres from the excavation site, Detective Inspector Mark Benefield said: "We have always believed that Carmen had been dismembered and our site examination today confirms that.

"We have removed containers that will be examined and Carmen is inside the containers."

He said the excavation had been carried out with "sensitivity and with great care" and officers would remain at the search site for several days.

It came as Carmen's ex-partner, murder-accused Brad Callaghan, quit his job at an Auckland construction firm from inside jail.

Carmen's mother Teresa Scott has been informed her daughter's remains have been found and she is believed to be planning to fly to New Zealand.

A team of around 20 police and Environmental Science and Research officers worked through the day to painstakingly recover Carmen's remains and other evidence. They were last night being offered trauma counselling.

After receiving information during the week, officers discovered the excavation site on the Incline Track, 2km from the Arataki Visitor Centre on Scenic Drive, on Friday night.

They returned to the area at first light yesterday to continue digging on sites marked with a crossed grid.

"It's a relief to be able to return Carmen back to her family but we have got a long way to go in this investigation," said police spokeswoman Noreen Hegarty.

"There's not a great deal of satisfaction of digging someone out of a crude burial site in the bush."

Distraught friends arrived just after 2pm to pay their respects and leave flowers at the track entrance.

Jamie Ruscoe, 22, from Auckland, arrived with her mother and two friends. "Today is all about closure for us," she said. "After two months of not knowing, finally we can grieve for our friend."

The past two months had been "horrible, devastating", but she praised police for bringing Carmen home.

"The first time I talked to the police they told me they weren't going to rest until they found Carmen. I know how hard they have worked, they have been amazing and today proves that."

She said the friends would discuss burial arrangements with Carmen's South African family but planned to hold their own memorial service for their friend.

Waitakere City Council kaumatua Eddie Thomson arrived to bless the site around 2.30pm.

At 2.58pm a silver hearse arrived and entered the gated track.

An hour and 15 minutes later, the hearse left while sombre police officers flanked the road in a show of respect.

The remains were taken to an Auckland morgue where a post-mortem examination is expected to begin today.

Families arriving at the Arataki Visitors Centre for bush walks were horrified at learning of the grisly discovery.

John Peters, who had travelled from the Waikato with his two children to walk the track, said: "It's gruesome but at least they have found her. It's better than a tramper coming across her body I suppose."

French tourist Stephanie De La Rue, 21, said she was shocked that the remains had been found in a popular tramping site.

"It is such beautiful countryside, I can't imagine how this could happen here."

The burial site was just a few metres away from the Nihotipu Tramline, where the Rainforest Express carries thousands of passengers on scenic journeys each year.

Hundreds of people's trips were cancelled yesterday as police closed the area.

A sign at the entrance to the railway line said: "Due to circumstances beyond our control, all Rainforest Train trips are cancelled for Saturday 2 October and Sunday 3 October."

Carmen's former partner Callaghan, 32, is accused of murdering her on June 29 at her home in Ngapuhi Rd.

Their 5-year-old son Jack is being cared for by relatives.

An associate of Callaghan's has been assisting police with their investigation.

Benefield said further arrests could still be made.

Also yesterday, the boss of the construction company where Callaghan was working revealed he had resigned from his job as a structural engineer.

Manson's director Culum Manson said: "Brad has resigned from our company.

"The whole thing has been a shock and very surreal for us. All we can think about is focusing on Carmen's family and her little boy Jack," he said. "That's at the top of our minds; everything else is secondary."

Manson said his staff had been offered counselling by victim support.

"I mean it's like someone sitting next to you being arrested - it's a bit of a shock.

"We are really happy the police have found her so the family can get some peace and little Jack. I mean, he is only 5 years old and he has potentially lost both his parents."

Carmen's friends and family expressed both relief and anger on social networking sites last night.

Cousin Craig Lavagna wrote on Facebook: "That f*** wants to be hung in public and stoned by kids to his death. The life he has destroyed is not only Carmen's but the family's."

Sharon Ann Butler wrote: "R.I.P my beautiful girl, we may have lost you but gran, grandad [sic] and your dad have now found you, you will always be in our hearts and never forgotten."