Auckland murder accused in court

David Roberts was managing an apartment block (Photo: Daily Post)

A man accused of stabbing to death a 43-year-old Welsh expatriate living in New Zealand has appeared in court.

Baseem Ridha Kadhim Abbad Al-Almery, 30, an Iraqi, was returned to custody after appearing at Auckland and will face another court hearing in October.

He is accused of murdering David Roberts, originally from Caernarfon, Gwynedd, and Deni Rudiantonio, in the flats where Mr Roberts worked.

Police found the bodies following an armed siege in July.

Officers had taken three hours to get the man down from the building's roof.

Mr Roberts' family said they had been told a siege had ensued after he tried to stop the alleged knifeman from getting into the apartment of a female resident in the block where he worked.

At the time, his family described him as a hero and called him "a very, very proud Welshman".

After the murder Mr Roberts' sister, Karen Morgan, 47, and her husband Ronald, also 47, who live in Caernarfon, said they were in shock.