A 16-year-old has appeared in court charged with the murder of a police employee in his south Auckland home.
Denis Phillips, 59 was found dead at his home in Green St in Papakura on Saturday morning.
The teenager appeared at the Papakura Youth Court on Monday morning and will reappear on Friday.
Strict suppression orders mean many of the details of his court appearance cannot be reported.
Mr Phillips was a temporary sworn officer who worked as a jailer at the Counties Manukau Police Station and had worked with the police for 12 years.
A memorial service was held at the station on Sunday evening, and police say funeral arrangements will be made later this week.
Hundreds of temporary sworn police staff are employed throughout New Zealand, mainly as jailers or prisoner escorts and observers.
Police say they play a vital role in the organisation by freeing up fully-sworn staff to concentrate on frontline policing duties.
