Police have recovered a body from a rural bush area 20 minutes east of Kaitaia.
Police have been searching in the area since yesterday using cadaver dogs and a specialist search unit from Auckland.
The body will be taken from the scene today and a post-mortem examination will be held in Auckland tomorrow.
Detective Senior Sergeant Rhys Johnston says a scene examination will continue at the site tomorrow.
¡°We believe the body may have been there for some time and it has been a methodical process to preserve any potential evidence. We have been assisted today by a Pathologist and several scientists from ESR in Auckland.¡±
Formally identifying the deceased will take some time and we will not be releasing any further details until this has been completed.
ENDS
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