A man critically injured in a fire in the Hutt Valley last week has died.
Ian David Moller, 82, was injured in the fire in a block of flats in Stokes Valley on November 5.
He was pulled from the Hanson Grove fire — the third suspected arson at the property in the past month — and died late yesterday.
“Hutt Valley Police pass on our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and the wider Stokes Valley community, who knew him as a local fixture,” Detective Inspector Haley Ryan, Wellington District Field Crime Manager, said.
The police investigation has now been upgraded to a homicide inquiry.
A man aged 21 has been arrested over an alleged arson on October 10, but a connection between him and the fires on October 14 and November 5 has yet to be established.
“We are still seeking the public’s assistance in helping us establish what has occurred, why it has occurred and identify those persons responsible for each,” Ryan said.
“Police believe there is a strong possibility that there could be other people involved.
“Our investigations team are committed to finding out the full circumstances of all three incidents and holding those responsible to account.”
She called on anyone in the community who had information to come forward.
“Mr Moller was an elderly man who deserved to live out his last years in a safe place, in the heart of the community he loved.”
