Why?

The Herald had a story yesterday which caught our eye, and made us wonder what goes through some people's heads; check this out:

A woman who suffered horrific injuries after she was dragged behind a car at high speed has fallen out with her family over her decision to stay with the man convicted of kidnapping her.
Rotorua mother Ana Eriepa is still recovering from the terrifying ordeal on May 25 that saw her left foot amputated above the ankle, multiple skin grafts, a ripped scalp and a badly dislocated thumb.
Her boyfriend, Sonny Waiti, was to have been sentenced this Friday on the charge of kidnapping, which he admitted, but the Herald understands his case has been deferred to a later date as he is changing lawyers.

It's not surprising that Ms Eriepa has fallen out with her whanau when you read her impassioned defence of the man who almost killed her; read on:

Ms Eriepa said she would continue to support Waiti and would attend his sentencing.
She said fears about him were unfounded.
"People don't understand him but he's not a bad guy," she told the Herald at her Rotorua home yesterday.
"Will I stand by him? 100 per cent, I will. He's actually a good boy ... he has a good heart."

And here comes the real kicker:

Ms Eriepa told the Herald she had no concerns for her children's' safety around Waiti. But when asked if she intended to marry him she became evasive.
"I'm not saying if it's true but I'm not denying it either," she said.
A woman who referred to herself as Waiti's aunty and was at Ms Eriepa's home yesterday said her nephew "had a good heart".
"He was just on that crap [drugs], that's all," said the woman, who asked not to be named. "He's been through a lot, he has good intentions but just goes about things the wrong way."
According to a police summary of facts, Waiti and Ms Eriepa were in a relationship and had been living together for about three weeks after he was released from prison.
Waiti had only just completed serving a two-year, three-month sentence for aggravated assault and other offending.

Ah yes; the drugs. The old "he's a good guy when he's not stoned off his face" line. Well, pardon us for having old-fashioned values and all that but someone who is a "good boy" with a "good heart" doesn't beat his partner up, stuff her in the boot of the car and drive off at speed to show the partner that he loves her. 

Ms Eriepa's loyalty to the man who cost her her lower leg is touching on one hand, but totally misguided. We guess that it's a good thing that Waiti will be kept away from her children for a significant period of time. 

Otherwise we are sure that Child Youth and Family would become very interested in the living arrangements of the whanau, especially given Paula Bennett's policy announcement last week on vulnerable children.

Is it any wonder that New Zealand has such a dreadful problem with child abuse when parents allow violent, drug-fuelled monsters into their homes and lives?

Here's hoping it's more than 14 1/2 years...

Another violent thug has been removed from the streets today; the Herald reports:

Convicted killer Nikki Roper has today been sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum non-parole period of 14-and-a-half years, for murdering ex-girlfriend Alexsis Tovizi in a jealous, revenge-driven rage.
Today, her young son passed a message to Roper in the dock: "I feel really, really sad you killed my mummy.''
Roper killed 21-year-old mother-of-one Alexsis with a sleeper hold at her Christchurch flat in 2010 - just five days after being released from prison where he was serving a sentence for choking her.
As he left jail in 2010, the unemployed 24-year-old he told an inmate: "I'm going to kill the b****.''
Roper, who has 'Alexsis' tattooed under his left eye, had denied strangling the student social worker on the night of December 4, 2010 at her Stanmore Rd flat.
He claimed his on-again, off-again girlfriend died of natural causes related to binge drinking.
But after a seven-day trial, the jury took just four hours to convict him.

14-and-a-half years is a good start for Roper, who had already done time for trying to choke Ms Tovizi. But given what happened when the jury returned its verdict against Roper a few years ago, we hope that he spends a much longer time off the streets; read on:

When Alexsis' mother Cheryl Tovizi gasped "Thank God'' at the verdict, Roper shouted "F*** up b****'' and then leapt out of the dock and lunged at someone in the public gallery who'd given evidence against him.
He was pounced on by four court security staff and dragged into the cells.
When he was brought back into the room at the High Court in Christchurch, Roper turned to the gallery again and said: "Just remember what happens when you nark on the Mongrel Mob, eh.''
Today, his hands were restrained in the dock and was flanked by two prison officers as members of the Tovizi family read out emotionally-charged victim impact statements.
Cheryl, who had taken out a protection order against him but said they were often in touch, says her life is a "living nightmare'' after the horror of losing her caring daughter, who had a natural instinct to care for "waifs'' and people who had been bullied.
"She was a born rescuer,'' she said, and being highly motivated to help others was training as a social worker.
Since the murder, her life has been turned upside down. She now cares for her young grandson, a "precious, badly hurt little boy'' who was just three at the time of the murder, and had been inside the house when Roper murdered his mum.
When Roper cleaned out Alexsis' bank account after killing her, the boy, now aged 5 who cannot be named for legal reasons, was left "financially destitute'' with just 14 cents.
He is still suffering profoundly from the grief of losing his mother, Cheryl said. He is scared of sleeping, suffers nightmares and is undergoing counselling.
He has a night-time routine that involves him listening to a recording of his mother's voice which tells him she loves him.
She had to tell the boy that when his mum was buried "no, he couldn't go in the box with her''.

We have no sympathy whatsoever for predators such as Nikki Roper who prey on their victims. The fact that Roper, after killing Ms Tovizi went out and cleaned out her bank account leaving nothing for her son suggests that he is a person with no scruples whatsoever.

This case is tragic on so many levels. The die was cast for Alexsis Tovizi the moment that Roper entered her life. She had some respite while he was in prison for a serious assault on her, but she died within days of Roper's release from prison.

The Parole Board will not consider a release for Roper until at least the end of 2027. However the community would be a far safer place if he was never released from prison.

Ladies beware

This Facebook page may be being administered from outside the wire at Paremoremo, but we would urge caution to any women who see it:

Today's Herald on Sunday carried a story about the page. It notes that some of New Zealand's worst criminals are touting for female penfriends via the page. 

We're not going to link to either the page or the Herald story. But any woman considering starting a penpal relationship with some of these thugs should be very, very careful indeed; the crimes that they have committed are some of New Zealand's most horrific.

The Courts in New Zealand seem to be forever clearing up the mess left when women invite the wrong men into their lives. or those of their children. Whilst the criminals in this case may be locked up, they have plenty of associates on the outside who would be only too willing to pay some of these women a visit. And that is a recipe for disaster.

UPDATED: Gottim! A public service post

UPDATED: Kudos the the NZ Police; the Herald reports:

The man wanted over a series of home invasions targeting elderly people has been arrested after a manhunt north of Auckland.
William John Murphy, 36, was seen driving a stolen car on a State Highway 1 north of the Puhoi toll tunnels at about 8am.
The car crashed a short time after it was spotted. Murphy fled into the bush near Puhoi River, police said.
A dog unit and the police Eagle helicopter found Murphy hiding near Puhoi. He surrendered without resistance.
Acting Waitemata district commander Inspector Les Paterson apologised for commuter delays as police closed off the highway as they pursued Murphy.
"Police apologise for any inconvenience caused to motorists and commuters but say the road closure was essential in the interests of public safety."
Murphy has been taken into custody and is expected to appear in Court later today at North Shore.

This is excellent news. Now that Murphy is in custody, we will make no further comment as the justice system takes its course.

 ******************************************

Do you know this man? Or have you seen him?

Stuff names him:

The main suspect in a string of robberies targeting elderly victims in Auckland has more than 90 convictions for burglaries, violence and sexual crimes.
On Saturday at 8pm another elderly woman was bound, beaten and robbed in her Pakuranga home - a close-knit retirement village of nearly 30 units.
Police believe the same man may have been responsible for eight recent attacks and yesterday named 36-year-old William John Murphy, also known as Wiremu Ruapapera.
Murphy was identified as the man trying to use a stolen ATM card on Thursday, in a picture taken at the Pt Chevalier ASB Bank shortly after a 79-year-old Westmere woman was robbed and tied up in her home.
Detective inspector Karen Malthus said Murphy was "transient" and known to move between Kaitaia and Manurewa.
He had failed to appear in the Auckland District Court for sentencing in February and cut off his electronic monitoring bracelet.
Police previously described Murphy as a "top priority offender" and said he "poses a real threat to the community". 

Now of course Murphy is onlky a suspect at this stage, and is entitled to be considered innocent until proven guilty. But the fact that the Police have released his photograph and name must mean that they have very strong evidence against him for at least some of the recent attacks.

Attacks like this on the elderly in their own homes are an especially nasty crime. We hope that the publication of Murphy's name and photograph leads to a swift arrest. The most recent attack is more serious by virtue of the violence against the elderly victim. The elderly are particularly vulnerable, and if the violence continues to escalate, it is only a matter of time before some unfortunate, random victim is gravely injured or even killed.

We urge readers to share this image via whatever sources are available to them in the hope of flushing this career criminal out. New Zealand will be a safer place once he is off the streets. 

Words fail us...

The Herald reports:

A Rotorua man who kidnapped his girlfriend then dragged her behind a car for almost 2km told police he put her in the car boot "to show her that he loved her".
Sonny Te Aramoana Waiti, 26, appeared in the Rotorua District Court today, handcuffed and guarded by three officers.
Through his lawyer Harry Edward he pleaded guilty to a charge of kidnapping 37-year-old Rotorua mother Ana Eriepa on May 25.
According to the police summary of facts, Waiti and Ms Eriepa were in a relationship and had been living together for about three weeks since Waiti was released from prison.
On the night before the incident they travelled to Tauranga and bought a new car. Waiti had been consuming alcohol and drugs on the trip and had become "paranoid".

And here we were, thinking that Once Were Warriors was a work of fiction. This is a truly sickening case, and we suspect it will be many years before Waiti has the opportunity to show another unfortunate woman how much he loves her.