Car torched after man disappeared
Police investigating the disappearance of a man, who they believe has been murdered, have appealed for sightings of a torched car.
Anaru Moana, 37, vanished on December 20, several hours after his mother died of cancer at Waimate. He was last seen at her home about 6.30am, and his phone and bank cards have not been used since.
There was soon talk in the underworld that Moana’s disappearance could be linked to an incident in
Oamaru where he allegedly stole methamphetamine and cash worth tens of thousands of dollars from a Tribesmen gang-linked car parked outside The Warehouse in September. Earlier this week, Stuff revealed police believed he had been killed and they had launched a homicide inquiry.
Yesterday, Detective Inspector Joel Syme appealed for sightings of a silver 2004 Subaru Legacy that was torched in a layby on State Highway 1 near the Waihao River, less than 10 kilometres from where Moana disappeared. Early on December 22, police received calls about the car being on fire. Another vehicle was seen leaving the area, and police are seeking information on it and its movements.
‘‘We are piecing together what has happened to Anaru and working incredibly hard to identify those responsible,’’ Syme said.
Police planned to search for Moana in ‘‘areas of interest’’, Syme said.
He previously said a team of investigators had been working the case for several months and were following ‘‘strong lines of inquiry’’.
He would not reveal why police believed Moana had been killed or comment about the speculation surrounding the apparent drug rip-off in Oamaru.
Friends and family of Moana contacted by Stuff have declined to comment. Moana is thought to have had links to several gangs, including the Head Hunters, which established a new South Island headquarters in Timaru last year. Most of his family lives in the North Island.
In a video, posted online on December 14, Moana fought back tears while talking about the deteriorating health of his mother, who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer six months earlier. ‘‘This is a hard process to take on. You are beautiful inside and out mum.’’
In the video he talked of missing his children and how he hoped to spend Christmas with them.
Earlier in the year he posted about finishing a year-long stretch of home detention, talking of the ‘‘demons’’ he had battled and how he had survived the ‘‘wicked waters’’ that had been ‘‘bringing me down’’.
The Tribesmen gang has recently been embroiled in a turf war with the Killer Beez, who were once close allies. The conflict, which was centred in South Auckland, led to a series of drive-by shootings and arsons in the upper North Island.
The Tribesmen gang is also a significant player in the underworld in the South Island, where it has a base in an industrial part of Christchurch. Christchurch-based gang members were arrested last week in relation to a serious assault on the Waikato Expressway on March 11.
Anyone with information about Anaru Moana’s disappearance should contact Timaru police on 105.