Relatives expected to take murdered student's body back to China

Wan Biao

The body of murdered Chinese student Wan Biao would go home with relatives, police said today, moments after two men appeared in court over his death.

The body of the 19-year-old English language student was found stuffed into a suitcase which had been thrown into Auckland's Waitemata Harbour on Good Friday.

The discovery followed a ransom demand to his parents in China for $800,000.

No ransom money was paid and by the time police in Auckland knew of the abduction, Mr Wan was dead.

Today after two Chinese men, both aged 21, appeared in Auckland District Court on charges of murder, kidnapping and being an accessory after the fact, inquiry head Detective Inspector Bernie Hollewand said the inquiry was not over and a third person was being interviewed.

"I don't expect there will be another arrest today," he said outside the court after the two men were remanded in custody until June with name suppression.

"We are carrying on with our inquiries. I am not going to say any more about that," he said when asked if a further murder charge would be laid.

One of the men was charged with murdering Mr Wan with another unnamed person on Thursday or Friday. The same man also faced a charge of kidnapping Mr Wan to hold him for ransom.

The second man was charged that while he knew the other man had committed the crime of murder, he tampered with evidence to enable them to avoid conviction.

Both men were granted name suppression and remanded in custody for a pre-depositions hearing on June 28.

The men, both slightly built, appeared in court flanked by a policeman and a security guard. The man accused of murder wore a blue boiler suit while the other man wore civilian clothes.

Mr Hollewand said relatives -- "two aunts, an uncle and a cousin" -- were planning to travel to New Zealand and would probably take the body back to China.

Mr Hollewand said police were still keen to talk to four European women who were on the corner of Wellesley and Elliot streets in Auckland City about 3.25am on Friday.

He said in spite of appeals the four women had yet to contact police.

"They are European woman, completely unconnected to the events we are investigating except they happened to be at a place where they may have seen something of interest."

He said it was no surprise the case moved so quickly yesterday.

"Sometimes the evidential pieces fall into place and that really dictates the pace of the inquiry."

He said the police in Auckland were not told of the kidnapping demand until after the autopsy.

He would not say if the killing could have been prevented had police in Auckland been told of the kidnapping earlier.

"I won't answer that until after the trial and then the answer will be apparent," Mr Hollewand said.

- NZPA