Wellington Police divers late tonight (Wednesday 15 October) recovered a second body from the seabed near the wreckage of the Convair freight plane which crashed into the sea off Kapiti Island nearly two weeks ago.
Senior Sergeant Mike Coleman, Kapiti Police, says although a formal identification is still to be held the body is believed to be that of the plane’s co-pilot Mr Paul Miller, 50, of Thames. Mr Miller’s family has been advised of the find.
Cockpit wreckage was lifted from the seabed this afternoon and divers worked into the night searching the crash site for Mr Miller’s body.
"It was on the last dive of the night, about 9.30pm, when a body was spotted," Mr Coleman says. "Additional divers were sent down, the body located and recovered."
It was being brought by the police launch Lady Elizabeth III which was expected to reach Mana shortly after midnight. The body would then be taken to Wellington Hospital for formal identification and a post mortem, most likely to be done on Thursday.
"Finding the body will bring some degree of closure to Mr Miller’s grieving family," Mr Coleman says.
The salvage operation is expected to continue on Thursday.