Homicide investigation progressing rapidly
Upper Hutt Police held a media conference this morning following the court appearance of three men jointly charged with murder and aggravated robbery in relation to the stabbing of a 21-year-old man yesterday.
Police can now release the name of the victim as they have spoken to family. He was Steven Michael Stone, an assistant storeman, aged 21.
A post mortem is yet to take place to determine the cause of death.
At this morning's court appearance, the three charged men were granted name suppression and were remanded in custody until 1 May. One of the three is aged 31 and the other two are aged 19.
The three men were tracked and arrested in Trentham last night.
Police located a fourth person connected with the incident this morning. He is currently helping police with their enquiries.
Investigators are not looking for anyone else who was at the robbery scene, says Acting Upper Hutt Area Commander Inspector Mike Hill.
Police were called to 39 McParland Street at about 11.20am yesterday.
Ambulance staff had already arrived at the address, but had been unable to resuscitate Mr Stone, who died at the scene.
He had two wounds which appear to have been caused by a knife or other sharp object.
At this stage police believe the attack was a botched robbery and the offenders were looking for cannabis.
"This was not a random attack. We believe the offenders were after cannabis, but the robbery went terribly wrong," says Inspector Hill.
"Initial indications are that whatever drug activity was occurring at the property, it was on a small scale and involved cannabis only. This incident highlights the dangers of dealing with drugs."
Police are continuing their investigation today and a team of 25 detectives and uniform officers will be working on it for at least the next three days.
Officers will be canvassing homes on McParland Street interviewing residents.
Police would like to hear from anyone who saw a dark or silver 4-door Nissan Bluebird car coming or leaving 39 McParland Street yesterday between 10am and 11.30am. "We believe that this was the get-away car," says Inspector Hill.
Police are also interested in any items that may have been discarded by the offenders, including items of clothing or the weapon used in the attack.
"Three of the suspects were located in Trentham last night as a consequence of information provided by the public. We have been very impressed with the level of co-operation we have received from residents and witnesses, which helped us locate the offenders in a very short space of time," says Inspector Hill.
Police can now release the name of the victim as they have spoken to family. He was Steven Michael Stone, an assistant storeman, aged 21.
A post mortem is yet to take place to determine the cause of death.
At this morning's court appearance, the three charged men were granted name suppression and were remanded in custody until 1 May. One of the three is aged 31 and the other two are aged 19.
The three men were tracked and arrested in Trentham last night.
Police located a fourth person connected with the incident this morning. He is currently helping police with their enquiries.
Investigators are not looking for anyone else who was at the robbery scene, says Acting Upper Hutt Area Commander Inspector Mike Hill.
Police were called to 39 McParland Street at about 11.20am yesterday.
Ambulance staff had already arrived at the address, but had been unable to resuscitate Mr Stone, who died at the scene.
He had two wounds which appear to have been caused by a knife or other sharp object.
At this stage police believe the attack was a botched robbery and the offenders were looking for cannabis.
"This was not a random attack. We believe the offenders were after cannabis, but the robbery went terribly wrong," says Inspector Hill.
"Initial indications are that whatever drug activity was occurring at the property, it was on a small scale and involved cannabis only. This incident highlights the dangers of dealing with drugs."
Police are continuing their investigation today and a team of 25 detectives and uniform officers will be working on it for at least the next three days.
Officers will be canvassing homes on McParland Street interviewing residents.
Police would like to hear from anyone who saw a dark or silver 4-door Nissan Bluebird car coming or leaving 39 McParland Street yesterday between 10am and 11.30am. "We believe that this was the get-away car," says Inspector Hill.
Police are also interested in any items that may have been discarded by the offenders, including items of clothing or the weapon used in the attack.
"Three of the suspects were located in Trentham last night as a consequence of information provided by the public. We have been very impressed with the level of co-operation we have received from residents and witnesses, which helped us locate the offenders in a very short space of time," says Inspector Hill.