Tauranga Hospital anaesthetist David Holland was reported missing on March 11, 2022. Photo / NZME
Tauranga Hospital anaesthetist David Holland was reported missing on March 11, 2022. Photo / NZME
The parents of a Tauranga doctor who disappeared two years ago today say they still have hope they will see him again.
David Holland, an anaesthetics registrar at Tauranga Hospital, was last seen on in the evening of March 11, 2022 at his Papamoa home.
Holland, 31 at the time, was initially believed to have been lost at sea while swimming at his home beach but CCTV later emerged of a person who looked like him walking towards State Highway 29a.
His mother Karen Holland said that two years on from his disappearance, the family had no closure.
“We still have no news,” she said in a statement released by NZ Police today. “Nothing. Just speculation. A nightmare. We want to wake up.”
This man walking on the Sandhurst Drive overbridge is believed to be missing Tauranga doctor David Holland.
She said the statement was “hard to write” but the two-year anniversary was an opportunity to reach out to New Zealanders “in my ongoing search for answers.
“Life changed forever when I took the late night call from New Zealand telling me that there was concern about his safety,” she said.
Holland had lived in New Zealand since 2017 and had applied for residency before his disappearance, so the concerns about his safety came as a shock, she said.
Karen Holland remembered her youngest son as “clever, multi-talented, sporty, caring, kind, thoughtful – such a beautiful human being.
“David is much missed by family and friends in New Zealand and the UK.”
She said she had visited her son in New Zealand several times and said that the country would always be special to her.
“I’m hoping for help from communities all over the country at this sensitive, emotional time. I’m appealing to people all over New Zealand to come forward with any information that they may have linked to his disappearance or his current whereabouts, if he is still with us.”
She appealed to anyone who might be connected to the disappearance, or knew someone who might have been, to contact the police.
She also appealed directly to her son to get in contact.
“You are my waking thought, my last thought at night.
“Dealing with ambiguous loss, grieving, looking for answers is part of my life.
“Grief doesn’t go away and can be incredibly lonely. No parent chooses this road.”
They urged anyone with information to get in touch, quoting file number 220312/6869.
Authorities were called when Holland failed to turn up for work at Tauranga Hospital. Family and friends expressed concern for his welfare and a missing person inquiry began.
Originally from Swansea in Wales, Holland was a keen cyclist, surfer, hiker, snorkeller, scuba driver, free diver and an experienced swimmer who loved the sea.
When the CCTV footage emerged, Detective Inspector Craig Rawlinson said if the man in the footage was Holland, it was “the last known recording of him.
“The male was wearing hiking boots, tan-coloured pants, and a dark-coloured long-sleeved hooded top. David had previously been recorded wearing similar clothing, all of which was missing from his home address. Again indicating that the male is David.”
Searches were carried out in the area near where the footage was taken without success.
At the time, police said they had received 30 reports from members of the public about Holland but none of them led to any positive lines of inquiry.
Up to 148 volunteers and staff from police, LandSAR, Surf Lifesaving NZ and Coastguard spent 612 hours looking for Holland in an expansive land search.
More than 22km of the coastline from Mount Maunganui to Maketū was searched, including sand dunes and reserves, pockets of bush, areas less travelled, private property and in and around Holland’s home.
No electronic footprint had been found since he was last seen at his home — no emails, phone calls, texts, credit card or banking transactions.
Karen Holland’s statement
This is very hard to write but it is an opportunity not to be missed, a chance to reach out to the people of New Zealand in the hope that they can provide me with some support in my ongoing search for answers.Two years ago, on 11 March 2022, my youngest son, Dr David Holland, an anaesthetics registrar in Tauranga Hospital, was reported as missing in the Papamoa area.
Having lived in New Zealand since 2017 and recently applying for his residency, this came as a complete shock.
Life changed forever when I took the late night call from New Zealand telling me that there was concern about his safety. Initially thought to have been lost at sea whilst swimming, despite being a strong swimmer, later CCTV footage of someone that could possibly have been David, walking towards a state highway, led to other theories developing and hence, no closure.We still have no news.
Nothing.
Just speculation.
A nightmare.
We want to wake up. Clever, multi-talented, sporty, caring, kind, thoughtful – such a beautiful human being, David is much missed by family and friends in New Zealand and the UK.
Having visited David several times in New Zealand, the country will always be special to me.
I’m hoping for help from communities all over the country at this sensitive, emotional time.I’m appealing to people all over New Zealand to come forward with any information that they may have linked to his disappearance or his current whereabouts, if he is still with us.
If you are connected to his disappearance in any way, or know someone that may have been, please contact the police.And if you see this appeal yourself David, please come back to us.
You are my waking thought, my last thought at night.
Dealing with ambiguous loss, grieving, looking for answers is part of my life.
Grief doesn’t go away and can be incredibly lonely. No parent chooses this road.
