Just 12 minutes later, there was no sign of the West Coast tramper, and his phone has not been active since.
Police say this is the latest development in the search for the 75-year-old Rūnanga beekeeper, who never returned home from a planned walk in the hills.
In a statement today, police revealed that Mr Arbon set off on Wednesday July 23, leaving a handwritten note:
Gone for walk
Mt Davy to Mt Sewell
Back tonight or tomorrow morning
After finding the note, a concerned neighbour raised the alarm at midday on Thursday last week. Since then, rescuers have been combing every track Mr Arbon could have taken.
On Monday, police said the rescue team got a lead after polling on Mr Arbon’s phone pinpointed his last position.
It showed that at 2.39pm on July 24 Mr Arbon was in an open area, roughly 1km north of Sewell Peak’s repeater and 2km south of Mount Davy, heading south.
That appears to be the last time the phone was active, police said, but it gave searchers a place to focus.
At 2.51pm, some 12 minutes after the phone “pinged”, a police officer was flying over that exact location in a helicopter taking video of the search area, Senior Sergeant Kirkwood said today.
“When we reviewed the footage, we couldn’t find any sign of Mr Arbon in it.
"We know his phone was absolutely in that area, and we know the polling is right - you get perfect reception up there because you’re right by the repeater," he said.
“In this area, you’re a good distance from the cover of bush, and it would’ve been a struggle for him to walk that far that fast.
“We have spoken to two people who walked the same route in the same direction, and they didn’t see him.
"It’s really odd.”
Huge effort by searchers
Snr Sgt Kirkwood said more than 750 search hours have been spent by ground teams alone.
“The search team is pretty flat, we don’t like not being able to return someone home. We’ve had 18 people in an extended line looking for anything that will lead us to him, but there’s been nothing, it’s unusual.”
It was not a small search area, nor easy to search.
Teams made up of police staff, Land Search and Rescue personnel, and dogs have been doing their utmost, but days of “nothing” have followed.
There has been n definitive footprints, no discarded items, no scent to track.
It has been "gruelling, painstaking work" in West Coast conditions.
“The community response has been fantastic, locals have been offering us support and someone offered us the use of their helicopter. It’s been outstanding, as usual. People really care about each other.”
'We're not giving up'
Two Search and Rescue (SAR) experts would carry out a review of the search, in addition to one one that had been completed by the Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB).
Snr Sgt Kirkwood said reviews were a normal part of the search process and were carried out by people who were not part of the initial search. Fresh eyes might turn up new leads.
“We’ll be looking at the teleco [telecommunications] data, the information that was called in by the public, where teams searched and what they found.
“We’re looking at anything that will give us a lead," he said.
“We want to bring Mr Arbon home and are doing everything we can to make that happen.
“If we still don’t have any leads in the coming weeks, we’ll be back out there with specialist search dogs - we’re not giving up.”
Police continue to ask the public to report any information regarding Roy or his whereabouts via our 105 service, referencing file number 250725/2139.
- APL
