Whitney Jade Iraia-Burgess. Photo: NZME / Michael Craig
A woman arrested after the death of a man in central Auckland has pleaded not guilty to a charge of murder.
Whitney Jade Iraia-Burgess clutched a Bible as she appeared in Auckland District Court this morning to face a charge of murdering Daniel Otess. He was found in an inner-city Auckland car park building early on Sunday morning.
The 32-year-old defendant, wearing a white T-shirt and grey track pants in the dock, pleaded not guilty through her lawyer.
Judge Evangelos Thomas acknowledged the difficulty of the proceedings at the start of the hearing.
"I just want to recognise and acknowledge how difficult this is going to be for everybody touched by this tragedy, on both sides," he said.
"Ultimately the idea of charging someone is to bring some justice out of the situation," he said, adding that this will take time.
A number of people sat in the public gallery for the hearing, including one woman who wiped away tears when the defendant appeared.
Iraia-Burgess did not apply for bail and will remain in custody until her next appearance in the High Court in April.
Police had said the woman handed herself in at the Manukau police station after several days in hiding.
A homicide investigation was launched after a group found 57-year-old Daniel Otess beside a car in an open-air car park on City Rd in central Auckland on Sunday morning.
Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin said Otess appeared to have been assaulted and had died before he was found.
He was seen on CCTV an hour earlier in his car at a petrol station on the corner of Karangahape and Ponsonby Rds.
'Very good person'
Otess worked as a night cleaner and is remembered as a caring father of two.
His friend and member of the Ghana Association of New Zealand, Bright Duah, told the Herald that Otess' death has crushed the hearts of families in two countries.
"He will be missed by the whole community, he was a part of us," Duah said.
A large bouquet of flowers was left on the doorstep of the family home on Wednesday morning.
"I feel very sad and shocked. He was my friend, a very, very good person," Duah said, saying Otess recently took his family to Ghana to see his parents.
Honorary Consul of Ghana Dr Charles Ampomah-Dwamena said the community was supporting the man's family here and in Ghana.
"New Zealand is considered by our community as a safe and peaceful country to live in but this incident has shaken that confidence," the consul said.
Police yesterday said they are not looking for anyone else for the investigation.
This story originally appeared in the NZ Herald.