‘She’s our daughter, and we’re not giving up, ever’

It’s been almost two years since Anna Mannering’s death onboard a commercial fishing vessel in the Southern Ocean, but her mother says there are still more questions than answers. Evan Harding reports.

Lisa Mannering just wants to be able to grieve properly for her 21-year-old daughter.

But while the circumstances surrounding Anna Mannering’s death remain a mystery, she feels unable to do so.

Anna died in her cabin on Sanford’s San Granit commercial fishing boat in the Southern Ocean on January 27, 2020.

She was found unresponsive and later pronounced dead. More than 21 months later, police say an active investigation continues.

Lisa Mannering said it had been a horrific time of not knowing. ‘‘We are still in limbo... I want to be able to grieve properly, with some answers. How are you supposed to cope when there’s no conclusion?’’ she asked.

‘‘She’s our daughter, and we are not giving up, ever. We want to see some closure.’’

Her daughter had completed a deep-sea fishing course in

Westport in 2019 and was on her first commercial fishing expedition, working in the processing department of the San Granit.

Five months after Anna’s death, Lisa spoke of the lovely personality Anna had, and her many friends.

‘‘She was just so bubbly and so into everything. If she saw someone looking pretty she would tell them, because she liked to make people feel good.’’

At the time of her death, Anna had recently become engaged to a man who was also a crew member on the San Granit. They had planned to get married several weeks after the boat docked.

Though her daughter had a history of depression and had attempted to take her life in the past, she had got her life together in the previous year and was in a good place, her mother said.

A crew member had told her that Anna was dancing and having fun with the other crew in the hours before she died.

She had too much to live for to take her own life, her mother said.

Police initially told them it was a suspected suicide, but an autopsy report had cast doubt on that finding and police began investigating, she said.

This month, Lisa Mannering urged crew on the boat to contact police with ‘‘any information you have’’.

The Sunday Star-Times asked police multiple questions on the issue, including whether they believed Mannering had been killed or whether she took her own life, who had been questioned in relation to her death, and whether there were any suspects in her death.

In response, Invercargill CIB Detective Sergeant Chris Lucy, in a statement, confirmed police were continuing to make active enquiries into the circumstances of Mannering’s death. ‘‘Police have spoken to a number of people in relation to her death,’’ Lucy said, adding he was in contact with Mannering’s family with updates. ‘‘We will not be able to put a timeframe on how long these enquiries will take, and as enquiries are ongoing it would be inappropriate for us to comment on any of your further questions.’’ The coroner was yet to determine the cause of death, Lucy said. A Sanford spokeswoman, in a statement, said it was not appropriate for the company to make any detailed comment, given Mannering’s death was the subject of an ongoing police investigation and the matter was also with the coroner.

‘‘We can confirm that Sanford has co-operated, and continues to co-operate fully with all the relevant authorities.’’

She did not say whether Sanford had conducted its own enquiries into Mannering’s death.

‘‘Police have spoken to a number of people in relation to her death. We will not be able to put a timeframe on how long enquiries will take.’’ Detective Sergeant Chris Lucy