225 days ago

Did you see Danny?

The Team from Northland Police

Northland Police investigating the death of a Horeke man are seeking information from the public in the case.
Today, Police are also formally releasing the victim’s name.
Daniel Hepehi, also known as Danny Whiston, was found with critical injuries at a property in Waikerikeri Road in the early hours of May 22.
The 77-year-old sadly died at the scene.

Police are now appealing for sightings of Mr Hepehi on Wednesday May 21.
“Police have confirmed that Mr Hepehi shopped for groceries in Kaikohe around 10.30am on that morning,” Detective Inspector Rhys Johnston, Northland CIB, says.
“We would like to hear from anyone who saw Mr Hepehi or interacted with him over this time to assist in the investigation.”
“We are aware he frequently rode long distances on his bike around Horeke, Ōkaihau and Kaikohe,” Detective Inspector Johnston says.
Sightings in the area of a green and gold 4-wheel drive SUV vehicle with the number plate LCP129 are also being sought.

Northland Police launched homicide enquiry ‘Operation Dime’ after Mr Hepehi’s death on May 22.
Detective Inspector Johnston says: “As we have advised, we are not seeking anyone in connection with the homicide, but we are doing everything we can to find out what happened. Additional Police from other areas have joined the investigation.”

Anyone with information is asked to make a report online, or by calling 105.
Please quote the reference number 250522/0155.

Information can also be provided anonymously to Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

More messages from your neighbours
23 days ago

Scam Alert: Fake information regarding December Bonuses from MSD

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

The Ministry of Social Development is reporting that fake information is circulating about new ‘December bonuses’ or ‘benefit increases’

If you get suspicious communication, please contact Netsafe.

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10 days ago

Poll: Do you set New Year’s resolutions?

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

🎉 2026 is almost here!

We’re curious ... how do you welcome it?
Do you set resolutions, follow special traditions, or just go with the flow?

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Do you set New Year’s resolutions?
  • 10% Yes! New Year, New Me
    10% Complete
  • 16.9% Yes - but I rarely stick to them
    16.9% Complete
  • 73.1% Nah - not for me
    73.1% Complete
1296 votes
1 day ago

Update to Neighbourly members on data breach 06/01/2025 8am

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

Yesterday in the High Court at Auckland, Neighbourly was successful in being granted an injunction against any unauthorised use of the data taken in a recent breach.

As we alerted you on January 1 and confirmed on January 3, our systems were accessed illegally and members’ information, including names, email addresses, GPS coordinates from the address you provided to us, forum posts and direct member communications were among the data that was accessed.

We acted immediately upon hearing of a potential breach: we temporarily disabled the site, notified members and authorities and worked with our external security consultants to understand if and how it had occurred. We then confirmed the breach with members, safely restored the site to service and began the process of seeking the injunction. Yesterday’s decision by Justice Johnstone prohibits the use of the data by any unauthorised person, and requires them to permanently delete it, or any information obtained from it.

This does not mean that vigilance against scammers is not still required: there is a large industry globally that seeks to use stolen information for identity fraud or to dupe people into providing details of their financial affairs for theft. Again, to keep yourself safe from scammers it is critical that you:

- Don’t click links in emails. Instead, type the web address directly into your browser. This helps ensure you’re visiting a real site, not a fake one
- Enable two-factor authentication where available as this adds an extra layer of security to your data
- Stay alert for phishing emails. Be cautious of unexpected emails asking for personal information, especially ones that create a sense of urgency.

Again, we want to apologise to you for this illegal access to the Neighbourly database and to assure you that we have carefully worked through how this occurred. We have safely secured the site and its services for use and ensured we have robust processes in place so this cannot happen again.

We are continuing to work with the relevant authorities, including the National Cyber Security Centre, on any further steps we need to take.

If you have any further questions please contact us via our customer support team at helpdesk@neighbourly.co.nz.