Arrest made in Stoke homicide investigation

As put by Detective Inspector Lex Bruning:

Police can advise that this morning a 33-year-old man has been charged with murder in relation to the death of James Whitikau Barton on Friday 10 November.

He is due to appear in Nelson District Court on Friday 1 December.

Police would like to thank the public for their assistance over the course of this investigation.

“The information we received was valuable in piecing together what happened on the night Mr Whitikau died and enabled us to come to this result,” says DI Bruning.

/NZ Police Public Release. View in full here.