Police believe CCTV image may be Bates
POLICE will restart the physical search for missing Alexandra man Christopher Bates today, and are appealing for information on CCTV footage.
Detective Sergeant Derek Shaw of Alexandra said police received information to suggest the man in the photo, taken from CCTV footage, could be Mr Bates.
It was taken outside the Alexandra iSITE Visitor Centre on Centennial Ave, Monday February 12 at 8.52am.
It shows a man carrying what appears to be a white plastic shopping bag.
The footage does not show the man’s face which made identification difficult, Det Sgt Shaw said.
‘‘By releasing this image, we hope someone in the community can identify him or provide more information that may be helpful to our investigation.’’
Det Sgt Shaw said today more than 40 Search and Rescue volunteers from the lower South Island would join a police dog team for a mainly landbased search around Alexandra.
The teams would be searching some areas which were previously difficult to access due to flooding and vegetation.
There had been no official physical search for Mr Bates since the end of last week.
Det Sgt Shaw said anyone with information about the CCTV image was urged to contact the police Southern District Command Centre on (03) 4715002.