Man tells of shooting horror

A Rotorua man who was on the scene within seconds of a road worker being shot dead near Tokoroa says the man was found with a hole in his head.

Police are continuing their homicide investigation into the shooting of Hamilton man George Charles Taiaroa, 67, who was shot dead while manning a stop-go sign.

The shooting happened on Tuesday at 3.15pm on Tram Rd, a short stretch of rural road in the Kinleith Forest area which bridges the Waikato River.

Rotorua man Lawrie Scott said he was one of the first on the scene.

"I was just coming home from work from Mangakino and I came to a road closed sign on SH30."

He said a detour took him down Tram Rd where he saw someone lying on the ground.

"I was coming up to a one-lane bridge on Tram Rd and there was a dude lying on the road. I thought he must have had a heart attack or something like that."

Mr Scott said when he pulled over two men came running over saying he had been shot.

"When I got closer I saw the guy lying on the ground with a hole in his head," he said.

"The stop-go sign was just lying on the ground next to the guy."

Mr Scott said he did not hear a gun shot and estimated he would have arrived at the scene about 30 seconds after the man was shot.

He said some of the other people there saw what looked like a blue Jeep Cherokee speeding off towards Tirohanga Rd.

Detective Inspector Mark Loper told a press conference in Taupo yesterday a vehicle was stopped, before the shooting, to let a truck cross over the bridge on Tram Rd.

"Once that truck cleared the bridge, a 4x4 motor vehicle drove off from where it had been stopped near the victim.

"As it did so the victim was seen to fall to the ground," Mr Loper said.

Mr Loper said Mr Taiaroa's body was removed from the area yesterday morning and was taken to Auckland for a post mortem examination.

Detective Inspector Tim Anderson said it was still too early in the investigation to speculate about motives.

He said no one had been arrested at this stage.

"We are looking for a 4x4 type vehicle which may include a [Jeep] Cherokee or something similar," he said.

"Currently we have over 30 experienced staff assisting with completing area inquiries."

Mr Anderson said he believed the homicide was an isolated incident.

Anyone with information should contact Taupo police on (07) 378 6060, or anonymously contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.