Police search coastal area for 4WD in Hall case

Police search for Brett Hall. Photo / APN

Police investigating the disappearance of Palmerston North man Brett Hall are at the coastal area southeast of Wanganui, hoping to hear of sightings of a 4WD.

Teams of police were out door-knocking in Scotts Ferry, near the mouth of the Rangitikei River, yesterday in the hope of gathering more information about a dark grey Nissan Terrano.

Mr Hall, 47, was last seen around the end of May at his remote Pitangi Track lifestyle block north of Wanganui, and after an intensive search without any sign of him police are now treating the case as a homicide.

Mr Hall's past was described by police as "chequered". He was paroled from prison in 2009 after serving a sentence of seven-and-a-half years for dealing "a variety of drugs", receiving and unlawfully possessing a pistol.

Police dropped about 200 pamphlets on Monday in the area between State Highway 3 and the beach from Turakina to Bulls, looking for information on the movements of the Terrano, particularly on the morning of Sunday May 29, between 5.30am and 7.30am.

The vehicle was seen at Pitangi Track the weekend Mr Hall went missing, and they knew the it had come into the Scotts Ferry/Santoft Forest area, Detective Senior Sergeant David Kirby of Wanganui police said.

They did not think the owner of the Terrano was a Scotts Ferry resident, he said.

Around 15 uniformed and CIB staff would be in the area for two days, door-knocking and talking to residents.

Mr Kirby said they were hopeful someone would recognise the vehicle and the description.

They were also reviewing the June search of Mr Hall's Pitangi Track property and surrounds to determine if a further search was needed to cover areas that may have been missed.

- NZPA