The friends claim the case did not receive the urgency it deserved, and that if Heath had not been who they were, there would have been a lot more media attention and resources allocated to try to find them.
Colin, known as Col, Heath, who identified as non-binary and went by the pronouns they/them, went missing when living in Te Kuiti.
They were last seen by a flatmate in the town on March 19, 2022.
Aged 46 at the time, they had moved to the North Island from Dunedin only months before their disappearance.
In April 2022, police issued an appeal for information on the Waikato police Facebook page, followed by media reports in August, a fresh police appeal in September and a televised plea for information by family on Police Ten 7 in December.
A close Dunedin friend, who wanted to remain anonymous, said they had contrasting feelings about Heath’s remains being found.
"It’s kind of a mixture of relief that we finally know where they are and just generally heartbroken that they’ve been in a ditch for four years."
They thought they would feel more relief when Heath was finally found.
"I kind of always went, ‘well, at least we’ll know where they are’.
"But finding out where they are and where they have been, it’s like, oh my God, this is just horrendous."
A group of about half a dozen people remained in touch over Heath’s fate and never gave up trying to find them, the friend said.
"I don’t think any of us really thought that they were coming home alive, especially after such a long time. But we always wanted to find them."
Heath was described by the friend as "a beautiful oddball" and a loving person.
"Quiet but fierce. Very, very passionate about the things that they cared about. Loved a good protest."
They were a gentle person with a lot of love to give, but the world did not always love them the way it should have and as a result they had a harder life than most, the friend said.
Having "a fair amount of mental health struggles and troubles" meant they did not fit in in a lot of places.
"But Col was just a beautiful, beautiful human who deserved a lot better in life and a heck of a lot better in death."
The group of friends had issues with the investigation into Heath’s disappearance and the resources put into it, the friend said.
"The thing I would really like to say is that just because someone is an oddball, who might not fit neatly in a box or kind of more the fringes of society, doesn’t mean they’re not valued as a person and doesn’t mean that they aren’t loved and shouldn’t be looked for."
Some of the police were brilliant, others "not so much", the friend said.
"And for me, it really kind of comes down to that just because Col, you know, had mental health struggles and was queer and was kind of anti-establishment and loved a good protest and ... all the things that Col was doesn’t mean that they weren’t a loved human being that didn’t deserve to be looked for.
"Because it got to a point where kind of the resource thing fell away."
It was hard to swallow that Col was found less than 20km from their home.
Heath’s friends believed that if Heath had not been who they were, there would have been a lot more media attention and more police resources allocated to try to find them.
Another close friend, and Heath’s "chosen sibling" , Archie Bailey, said the fact their "dear friend" lay undiscovered for years beside a state highway was devastating to them.
"It is particularly painful, given that this person struggled deeply with their own sense of worth in the world.
"To those of us who knew and loved them — and to the many people whose lives they touched through care, advocacy and community activism — their life held immense value."
Detective Inspector Stephen Ambler, of Waikato Police, said the formal identification process of the remains was ongoing, and police would only be in a position to confirm the identity once the Coroner has approved, after communication with the deceased’s family.
"The cause and circumstances are also before the Coroner, and as such police is not in a position to comment on any matters, nor speculate as to identity," Det Insp Stephen Ambler said.
