By RNZ

A man wanted over a central Auckland fatal shooting has been found dead in or near Taupō.

Police were searching for Hone Kay-Selwyn, 31, who they believed shot one person dead on Ponsonby Rd on Sunday night.

A source confirmed the discovery of the body to RNZ.

The victim, who had been with a group of people at the time of the shooting, was found dead by police when they arrived at the scene, outside a bar.

As police hunted for Hone Kay-Selwyn - a woman claiming to be his partner has expressed her remorse over the incident.

Police put out a warrant to arrest the 31-year-old for unlawful possession of a firearm yesterday.

A woman who claims she is Kay-Selwyn’s partner reflected on the fatal shooting on social media.

“My inbox is overflowing with messages concerning Hone’s [alleged] actions [on Sunday] night in Ponsonby,” the woman said.

“I want to express my sincerest condolences to the family and loved ones of the victim. I’m deeply sorry and feel a great sense of shame about the situation.

“I’m still grappling with the fact that Hone [allegedly] took someone’s life.”

Her social media post has since been deleted.

Kay-Selwyn had been in court in the past: He first appeared in the Waitākere District Court in May 2020 on a charge of assault with intent to injure.

In June 2020, he appeared again after breaching bail.

And in December 2020, he appeared in the Waitākere District Court for breaching community detention conditions

It remained unclear what resulted from these charges. A police spokesman told the Herald to approach the court for further information on historical matters. He confirmed Kay-Selwyn was not on bail at the time of Sunday’s homicide.

The Herald has exclusive footage of Kay-Selwyn immediately after the shooting, showing him calmly walking away from the crime scene and talking on his cellphone.

Kay-Selwyn walks into the camera’s frame at 10.17pm, two minutes after the shots were fired.

He glances back at the scene multiple times but continues walking south towards Richmond Rd.

It was the second publicly available footage of the man from Sunday night after police released photographs of Kay-Selywn standing outside a pizza shop.

Kay-Selwyn was of a large build, with short dark hair, a moustache and a beard along his jawline.

He had a tattoo on his left forearm that appeared to read “Forever”, and he was wearing a manbag - where police said he was likely carrying his gun - and distinctive jewellery. He had a bracelet on his right arm, a watch on his left, and a very large, square-shaped signet ring on his left ring finger.

-NZ Herald.