Three people have reportedly been arrested in Panama over the violent death of a New Zealander. Armed robbers boarded a Kiwi family's boat and attacked, fleeing the scene with the vessel's motor. Panama broadcaster TVN reports three suspects are now being held in custody. Sixty-year-old Alan Culverwell was shot on his family boat off San Blas Island on Friday (NZ time), after responding to noise on the roof. His wife Derryn was attacked with a machete by men wearing hoods, while the children hid. Derryn and one of the children - a nine-year-old girl - are in hospital. Relatives are on their way to see them. "We will find the people responsible and hold them accountable," Panama Minister of Security Jonathan Del Rosario said earlier on Saturday (NZ time). "Our country is relatively small - everything is known here, and we will capture them." Culverwell, a paua diver from Picton, is being remembered as a real "family man". Alan's sister Derryn Hughes says he was a friend to everybody and his family was everything to him. "If you are a friend of Alan and you are learning this tragic news via media, we apologise that we did not reach you first. Please know our thoughts and love are with you. "I speak for the whole family when I say that we are devastated with what has happened. We would appreciate privacy at this time as we grieve as a family. We are all heartbroken."<doc-sep>Pirates shot a man dead at close range with a shotgun before attacking his wife with a machete after boarding the family’s vessel under the cover of darkness in Panama. Pirates shot a man dead at close range with a shotgun before attacking his wife with a machete after boarding the family’s vessel under the cover of darkness in Panama.... Pirates shot a man dead at close range with a shotgun before attacking his wife with a machete after boarding the family’s vessel under the cover of darkness in Panama. The dead man is 60-year-old Alan Culverwell, a former paua diver from Picton in New Zealand, who was remembered last night as a dedicated, loving husband and father. His traumatised wife and two children, one of whom was also injured during the attack, remain in hospital and distraught relatives are rushing from New Zealand to be by their side. The perpetrators, who wore hoods and stole an outboard engine during the attack, are still on the run. Local authorities are vowing to bring them to justice. It was supposed to be the journey of a lifetime for the adventurous Kiwi family. They left home before the chill of winter, bought a boat for a bargain in the United States and let the warm trade winds start them on a journey home to New Zealand that was expected to take up to two years. But they only made it as far as the central American country of Panama before crossing paths with the pirates who would violently alter the course of their lives. Around 2am local time on Friday, Culverwell, who had worked frequently in the Chatham Islands, emerged from the sleeping area of his family’s 65-foot launch while it was off the Guna Yala region, on the country’s northern coastline. He’d woken to a noise on the vessel’s roof. But when he went to investigate — in an incident that has similarities to that of Kiwi sailing legend Sir Peter Blake, who was shot by pirates on a vessel near the mouth of the Amazon River in Brazil in 2001 — he paid with his life. Culverwell’s sister Derryn Hughes told the New Zealand Herald her brother had been shot at “very close range” with a shotgun. His wife Derryn was then attacked with a machete, suffering a shoulder wound, and one of their children also suffered minor injuries. Derryn Culverwell later called for help to New Zealand. The three surviving family members are receiving treatment in hospital in Panama City. Arrangements are being made to bring Culverwell’s body back to New Zealand. Derryn Hughes said her brother was a dedicated, loving husband, father, son, brother, uncle and friend to all. “His family were his everything,” she said. “Nothing could have prepared us for the attack that took place overnight and has tragically taken Alan’s life. “We want to assure you all that Derryn and the children are safe, while understandably traumatised. “We are so grateful they survived … and we will [support] them through the coming days, weeks, months and years.” The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade would only say it was responding to an incident involving a New Zealand family in Panama. “Due to privacy considerations, no further information will be provided.” But a source in Panama told the Herald Culverwell was killed in an attack by pirates. She didn’t have any further information. A report by the Spanish-language media outlet Mi Diario said the incident took place on May 2 near the island of Dad Naggwe Dubbir, and the attackers wore hoods and stole a boat engine. The Culverwells are used to the gentle sway of the water below their feet. Their journey began when they sold their beautiful and isolated home in the Marlborough Sounds. The home near Picton could only be accessed by boat. Paua Industry Council chief executive Jeremy Cooper said that having searched the world for a nice boat for years, they used the money from the sale of their property to buy a “big 65-footer” in Florida. “It was a beautiful big boat that had been owned by someone with way too much money and [Culverwell] just timed it perfectly, he bought it in Florida for way less than had been spent on it,” he said. The family then flew to Florida and “decked out the boat and started driving it home”. Facebook posts showed the couple posting a glowing review in March on the page of a Florida marine service company that installed solar panels and other gear on their boat. They also stopped off at the Panamanian island of Bocas del Toro where they played volleyball and became good friends with the owners of the Drunken Monkey Panama bar, which has room for boats to pull up alongside it. The Pacific Puddle Jump website showed the family were due to leave shortly for French Polynesia as part of an annual and social sailing event. Cooper told the Weekend Herald the paua community was rallying behind the family and trying to raise money to support them. “A number of people have already rung me today to say ‘how can we contribute’,” Cooper said. There would also be costs associated with bringing Culverwell’s family home and working out what to do with their boat, Cooper said. He said Culverwell was known as a “legend” in the Chatham Islands paua industry for being an early campaigner for catches to be managed sustainably. “He certainly put his shoulder to the wheel … [and did] the hard graft when other people were still talking about it,” Cooper said. Cooper had known Culverwell since the early 1990s. He had also known Culverwell’s schoolteacher wife Derryn for decades, since she taught his children when they were young. A “brilliant teacher”, Derryn had been homeschooling the couple’s children on their boat as they made their two-year journey home. This article originally appeared on the New Zealand Herald and has been republished with permission.<doc-sep>The sister of a New Zealander killed in a violent death in Panama says their family has been left "heartbroken". Armed robbers boarded a Kiwi family's boat and attacked, fleeing the scene with the vessel's motor. Alan Culverwell, 60, was shot fatally off San Blas Island on Friday (NZ time), after responding to noise on the roof. His sister, Derryn Hughes, told Newshub the family were "drained" following what had happened. "The family is heartbroken," she said. "Every moment we're realising what we've lost - [it's a] pretty emotional time." Panama broadcaster TVN reported three suspects are now being held in custody in relation to the death. Hughes said she was impressed at the speed in which the arrests had been made. "It doesn't bring us any comfort in any way other than that these people are not able to go and do this to another family - it's still very raw," she told Newshub. Culverwell's wife, Derryn, was attacked with a machete by men wearing hoods, while the children hid. Derryn and one of the children were in hospital but have since been released, Hughes said. Relatives are on their way to see them. "We have got some people on the ground there now from New Zealand," Hughes said. Culverwell, a paua diver from Picton, is being remembered as a real "family man". He bought the vessel, the Aqua Lobo, in Florida two-and-a-half years ago. The family had been travelling through the Caribbean on a long trip home. They were anchored in a remote part of Guna Yala when the attack happened. Hughes said they were making plans to bring Culverwell and his family home although nothing was "set in concrete". "At this stage it's a case of day by day," she said. "He must come home." GoFundMe raises more than $15,000 "While a shoulder to cry on is readily available here, funds for this type of tragedy may not be," a GoFundMe crowdfunding page set up to help the family says. "A family is in need and people have reached out and requested this campaign so they may send help from afar." As of Saturday at 5pm (NZ time), more than $15,000 had been raised. Huges told Newshub it was "humbling" how generous everyone had been. "When you think about what New Zealand's been through recently and how generous people have been, that's just blown me away in such a short time. "That is just so generous of people to do that, so we couldn't thank them enough for that." The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said on Friday it is providing consular assistance. Newshub.<doc-sep>Two Panamanians have been charged with murdering a New Zealand man who was allegedly shot and killed on his boat by pirates. Prosecutor Tatiana Aguilar said at the courthouse in Colon that she had charged two men with aggravated homicide, robbery, criminal association and mistreatment of a minor in the death of Alan Culverwell. Culverwell was killed in the early hours of 2 May after three men entered his family’s boat, which was docked in Guna Yala, a cluster of islands off Panama’s Caribbean coast. Culverwell died of gunshot wounds while his wife and 11-year-old daughter were injured in the attack, Aguilar said. The attack generated heavy news coverage in New Zealand. During the hearing on Saturday afternoon, the court identified the two suspects as Leandro Herrera and Avelino Arosemena. A lawyer who appeared in court for the suspects declined to comment. The third suspect, a minor, also appeared in court in connection with the case, said Aguilar, who declined to comment further about the suspect due to his age.<doc-sep>
A New Zealander has been fatally shot and his wife attacked by pirates on a boat in Panama. Pirates boarded the launch belonging to Picton man Al Culverwell while he and his family were in the Guna Yala region in the north of the country. The family heard a noise on the roof of the vessel and when Culverwell went to see what it was he was shot and then his wife, Derryn Culverwell, was attacked with a machete, NZME reported. It is understood one of their children suffered minor injuries. A Facebook post on Culverwell's sister Derryn Hughes' page issued a statement on behalf of the Culverwell and Fisher families regarding the death of Alan. "Nothing could have prepared us for the attack that took place overnight and has tragically taken Alan’s life," it said. "We want to assure you all that Derryn and the children are safe, while understandably traumatised. We are so grateful that they survived this attack and we will work as a family to support them through the coming days, weeks, months and years." The statement offered apologies to Alan's friends possibly hearing of the news through Facebook, sharing: "Please know our thoughts and love are with you." It said the whole family is "devastated" with what has happened. "We would appreciate privacy at this time as we grieve as a family. We are all heartbroken." The family had been cruising the Caribbean and were on their way to the Panama Canal to eventually head back to New Zealand. The Panama Press reports the family were taken to hospital where they are being seen to by medical staff. El Siglo reported Culverwell was surprised by several hooded individuals who entered his ship early Thursday, to rob them. The alleged murderers, after committing the crime, fled and have not been captured, the paper said. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed they were providing consular assistance to a New Zealand family following an incident in Panama. Due to privacy considerations they wouldn't comment further. The family statement thanked anyone who had offered kindess and love, as well as the ongoing support of MFAT, NZ Police and Interpol. Newshub.