26 Feb 2017

Man charged with murder after Hawke's Bay death

7:12 am on 26 February 2017

A man has appeared in court, charged over the Waitangi Day murder of a man in a small coastal town in Hawke's Bay.

Mark Geoffrey Beale, who was 45, was found unconscious on a beach in Haumoana and died in hospital of his injuries.

Mark Beale

Mark Beale Photo: Supplied / Police

Officers had been seeking three men seen in the area.

Detective Inspector Mike Foster said a 19-year-old had now been arrested and charged with murder.

He appeared in the Hastings District Court today.

Detective Inspector Mike Foster said the victim was not known to the accused.

The two others are still being spoken to by police and are being treated as witnesses for now, but Detective Inspector Foster would not rule out further charges.

He said the police believed several other people knew about the killing and may have hidden the accused man.