Fire at Tokoroa flats not being treated as suspicious
Emergency services were called to the incident on Pōhutukawa Drive around 10.25am.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand attended with five trucks and tankers.
'The fire... was well involved upon arrival of the first truck,' a spokesperson said.
The flames were
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NZ Herald
2 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Kathleen Folbigg to receive $2.2m payout after wrongful murder convictions
'The Government will not make further comment on this matter.' Folbigg was 35 years old when she was locked up in 2003, wrongly convicted of killing her four young children. The children – Caleb, Patrick, Sarah and Laura – died between 1989 and 1999 at ages ranging from 19 days to 18 months. Folbigg was released from prison in June last year after receiving a pardon following an independent inquiry, which heard new scientific evidence that indicated her children may have died from natural causes or a genetic mutation. Her solicitor Rhanee Rego issued a statement describing the payment as 'profoundly unfair and unjust'. Experts had predicted a payment to Folbigg upwards of A$10m. 'The sum offered is a moral affront – woefully inadequate and ethically indefensible,' Rego said. 'The system has failed Kathleen Folbigg once again. Kathleen lost her four children; she lost 20 of the best years of her life; and she continues to feel the lasting effects of this ongoing trauma. 'The payment does not reflect the extent of the pain and suffering Kathleen has endured. This should be about the system recognising the significance of what it did to her.' Rego said an inquiry was urgently needed to understand how the Government decided on this figure. The payment to Kathleen Folbigg, who was released from prison in June last year after receiving a pardon, has been described by her solicitor as "profoundly unfair and unjust". Photo / NewsWire 'When Lindy Chamberlain was exonerated in 1994, she received A$1.7m for three years in prison. Kathleen Folbigg spent two decades in prison, yet for her wrongful imprisonment she has been offered A$2m,' she said. 'Kathleen Folbigg's fight should be over. After being failed at her conviction and abused in prison, she is now being treated with contempt by the very system that should be making amends.' Greens MP and justice spokeswoman Sue Higginson said the offer was 'shocking and insulting'. 'Two million dollars barely covers what Kathleen could have earned on a fulltime salary over 20 years,' she said. 'Kathleen has not only lost 20 years of wages, she has lost her four children, her home and her employability. She has racked up legal costs fighting her wrongful conviction, she has lost her superannuation, and she has been the victim of one of the worst injustices in this state's history – wrongful imprisonment.' Higginson said ex gratia payments were payments of grace and goodwill, 'but what the Minns Labor Government have done today is offered a disgraceful payment in bad faith, it is 'go away' money'. 'It's unfair and speaks of misogyny and failure to take responsibility for the state's infliction of a grave injustice,' she said. In recent times, Folbigg has said she might not be locked in a cell any more but still carried the shackles of 20 years of incarceration. 'I'm always watching who's coming through the door, who's behind me. I won't say fear, it's not a fear, just a bit of trepidation,' she said during an interview in Newcastle, the place she calls home. 'And I wait for someone else to open doors. When you're inside, you don't open doors or you cop it from the guards. 'I hadn't opened a door for 20 years, so yeah, I even find myself hesitating at my own doors at home. 'Then there is the anxiety that comes with meeting new people.'
NZ Herald
2 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Thai prosecutors indict 23 over Bangkok high-rise collapse in earthquake
Thai prosecutors indicted 23 people and firms on Thursday, in a case linked to the deadly collapse of a Bangkok high-rise in an earthquake. The 30-storey tower crumbled seconds after a 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit Myanmar on March 28 this year, killing thousands in Thailand's war-torn neighbour. The tower, meant to
RNZ News
2 hours ago
- RNZ News
NSW attorney-general approves $2 million compensation payment to Kathleen Folbigg after release from prison
By Nakita Jager, ABC Kathleen Folbigg (right) with her lawyer Rhanee Rego in 2023, when her convictions were quashed. Photo: ABC News / Keana Naughton Kathleen Folbigg's solicitor says a $2 million payout from the NSW government is "profoundly unfair and unjust" after spending 20 years in prison. Attorney-General Michael Daley granted a compensation payment to Folbigg, who was exonerated of killing her four children after spending two decades in jail for their deaths. Folbigg was convicted in 2003 of killing her four children between 1989 and 1999. Following a seven-week trial, a jury found Folbigg guilty of the murders of Patrick, Sarah and Laura, and the manslaughter of Caleb. In 2023 Folbigg's convictions were quashed and in 2024 she applied for a compensation payment. The state government said it had agreed to a request from Folbigg to not publicly discuss the details of the compensation decision. "The decision follows thorough and extensive consideration of the materials and issues raised in Ms Folbigg's application and provided by her legal representatives," Daley said. Folbigg's solicitor Rhanee Rego said in a statement her client continues to feel the lasting effects of this ongoing trauma. "Kathleen Folbigg spent two decades in prison, yet for her wrongful imprisonment she has been offered $2 million," the statement read. "When Lindy Chamberlain was exonerated in 1994, she received $1.7 million for three years in prison." Rego said the payment "does not reflect the extent of the pain and suffering Kathleen has endured". "This should be about the system recognising the significance of what it did to her. "An inquiry is needed to understand how the government decided on this figure." Greens MLC Sue Higginson says Folbigg's payment is not enough. Photo: ABC News / Victoria Pengilley NSW Greens MLC Sue Higginson dubbed the compensation amount an insult from Premier Chris Minns, describing the offer as "go away" money. "I'm astounded at the lack of reason, financial accounting, reflection and empathy this offer represents," she said. "Two million dollars barely covers what Kathleen could have earned on a full-time salary over 20 years. "Kathleen has not only lost 20 years of wages, she has lost her four children, her home and her employability. "She has racked up legal costs fighting her wrongful conviction, she has lost her superannuation, and she has been the victim of one of the worst injustices in this state's history - wrongful imprisonment." Rego said the system had failed her client once again. "Kathleen Folbigg's fight should be over. After being failed at her conviction and abused in prison, she is now being treated with contempt by the very system that should be making amends," she said. "This is profoundly unfair and unjust." - ABC
