Ocean Heke was found dead on the side of State highway 3 at Otorohanga, north of King County, early on Sunday morning. The cause of death is not yet known.
A family friend, Emmy Tapara, described how she spent a precious moment with Ocean when she attended her daughter’s 18th birthday party on Saturday night.
“I gave her a kiss and a hug. She said, ‘Hello, my aunty, I miss you,’ and gave me a big kiss…It is special. I didn’t realise it was going to be the last kiss.”
“She was a quiet girl but always had a big smile,” reported NZME.
17-year-old Ocean is one of eight siblings, and is said to be from a very tight-knit family within a small community.
A passer-by found the teen lying on the grass by the side of the road at 6.30AM Sunday.
While a post-mortem underway today hopes to uncover the truth behind Ocean’s death, Detective Senior Sergeant Ross Patterson said debris in the area suggests that a vehicle was involved.
Resident Lauren Zanders said she heard a vehicle driving fast past her property in the early hours of Sunday morning.
“”I got woken up some time in the wee hours of the morning by a car doing a burn-out down the road. The only thing I heard apart from that was a crowd of people saying ‘chug, chug’ at a party down the road.
“I’m just so sad that someone’s baby was taken away. It is just heartbreaking.”
Police are asking for anyone who has information on this incident to contact them.
