Ferzil Babu, who went missing while on a fishing trip at The Gap, Taiharuru on 1 May, 2024.
Photo: GiveaLittle

The body of a fisherman swept off rocks in Northland almost two years ago has been found washed up on an island off Bream Bay.

Ferzil Babu and Sarath Kumar had been fishing at The Gap, a popular but notoriously dangerous fishing spot near Taiharuru, east of Whangārei, on 1 May 2024, when they were swept into the ocean.

Kumar’s body was found two days later by the police dive squad, but an extensive search of the sea and shore failed to find Babu.

Kumar, 37, and Babu, 34, had been in New Zealand for only a matter of months, and both had young children.

Kumar had been employed as a registered nurse in the emergency department at Whangārei Hospital, where colleagues described him as a “kind and gentle person”.

A police spokesman said human remains were found on Coppermine Island, also known as Mauipane, by a Department of Conservation worker in December last year.

Coppermine Island is one of the Hen and Chicken Islands off Bream Bay, about 25km southeast of Taiharuru.

Police said the remains had been examined by a pathologist, an anthropologist and ESR scientists in an effort to identify who the person was.

The remains had now been confirmed as Babu’s.

The spokesman said police had informed his family of the discovery.

Both men were members of the Whangārei Malayalee Association, established by Malayalam speakers from southern India.

Police Search and Rescue, the Eagle helicopter, LandSar volunteers, the National Dive Squad, Coastguard Tūtūkākā, Northland Coastguard Air Patrol and Ruakākā Surf Lifesaving were all involved in the search for Babu.

The Hen and Chicken Islands are strict nature reserves and are rarely visited.

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