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Otago Daily Times
a day ago
- Otago Daily Times
'Unprecedented': Northland gets more cops as crime surges
By Peter de Graaf of RNZ An "unprecedented" spate of violent crimes and a significant police shortage in Northland has seen more than 90 police staff called in to bolster the region's thin blue line. The special staff operation has been running for three months, with about 30 police from as far as Southland re-deployed to Northland for five weeks at a time to plug the gaps, with no end date in sight. Northland police have been stretched this year by nine alleged homicides in a four-month period - more than all the homicides recorded across the region in 2024. Superintendent Matt Srhoj, the head of Northland police, said the pressure was compounded by a shortage of 25 officers across the region. Eighteen months ago the staffing deficit was double that, a shortage of 50 police. Srhoj said Operation Tai Pari was currently on its third cohort of 30 staff. He said investigating homicides took a lot of time, and large teams of staff had to be assembled at short notice. "As a result, some other matters that we would normally be investigating get put on hold, or don't get the timely attention that they deserve … So we put the call out [for extra staff] so we could still respond to other matters." He described a run of four homicides during a three-week period in February and March as "unprecedented". Most of the extra officers had been placed in Mid and Far North towns such as Kaikohe, Kerikeri, Kaitāia, Kawakawa and Moerewa, where staffing pressure was greatest. They were being used to boost staff numbers in front-line, investigative and road policing roles. Srhoj said more rotations were possible in coming months. Other parts of the country were not left short-staffed because just two or three came from each district at a time. Northland had supported other districts with staff when they were in need. Srhoj said the officers sent to Northland would have been paid regardless, but the operation's cost was "significant" because of the extra allowances, travel and accommodation. Srhoj told Checkpoint that bringing in officers from out of region was not a permanent solution. "It's only a short-term to medium-term sort of strategy... obviously we're looking at ways that we can increase our recruiting, we've got a real desire to get our local people... We've got dedicated recruiters who are doing a really great job at getting people who do apply through in a timely fashion. "We're quite lucky as an organisation to be a national police force, you know we can call on support from across the country when needed." Roddy Hapati Pihema, a community leader and Kawakawa-Moerewa representative on the Bay of Islands-Whangaroa Community Board, described the temporary boost to policing numbers as a "positive step". Burnouts and burglaries were "rife" in his area, but police were so stretched it could take a week or more to respond to a non-emergency call. He gave the example of a kuia who had been told to preserve evidence and not touch anything after her home was broken into, and ended up waiting two weeks. "So having police officers coming into our community form other areas, I think that's a positive thing," Hapati-Pihema said. "My only concern is that a lot of police who come from the cities don't understand the dynamics of rural living. It's not the same here. But I'm really happy something's being done. Crime's just got out of control and it needs to be reined in. The biggest issue is that people believe they can get away with it, because there's not enough police out there." That was not the fault of police, but a problem that had to solved by central government, he said. John Vujcich, Kaikohe representative on the Far North District Council, also welcomed the boost to the thin blue line. "They're doing what they need to be doing, which is getting on top of those [homicide] cases. So I think it's great. The sooner they get on to those cases, the sooner justice is seen to be done." However, Vujcich said he had not noticed any more police on the ground, which he believed was needed to deter street racing - which had led to the tragic death of a 12-year-old girl last week - and methamphetamine dealing. And while more police were needed, they could not solve the Far North's problems on their own. "You need to deal with the crime, but you also need to pick people up who've fallen into a hole, which may not be any fault of their own. You need to give them opportunities and teach them they are worth something, and give them skills and well-paying jobs." But some Northlanders had noticed extra police on the streets. A Kaikohe man, who did not want to be named, said he had been stopped at a traffic checkpoint for the first time in three years. Everyone manning the checkpoint was from outside the district, he said. "I know most of the police in Kaikohe, and the odd ones that come across from Kerikeri, but there were absolutely no familiar faces there at all." He was delighted to see extra police in the town and hoped they would deter "the bloody motorbikes running riot, the lawlessness, cars speeding through the town". "I think it's great, quite frankly… They're just so under-resourced." Meanwhile, Srhoj said good progress was being made in recruiting new officers in Northland, in Whangārei especially - though the pool of potential recruits became smaller further north. Police were keen to recruit Northlanders because they were more likely to stay long term. "We've had more people going through police college coming back to Northland than we've ever had." Srhoj also hoped the opening of a new police college campus in Auckland would help boost numbers. Northland's deadly crime wave Northland police launched nine homicide investigations in a four-month period between late January and May, one more than in all of 2024. They include two alleged murders in one day on March 15 (in Whangārei and Kaikohe) and on May 21 (in Kaikohe and the remote Utakura Valley, near Horeke). Two cases (one alleged murder, one manslaughter) involve three-year-old children. Police have made arrests in all nine cases, which are continuing to make their way through the courts. There have been no more homicides (a legal term covering murder and manslaughter) since May 21. The nine victims are: - 29-01-25: Kyle Jenkins, 17, Whangārei. - 23-02-25: Reign Puriri, 3, Te Kamo (Aitua Puriri has pleaded guilty to manslaughter/failing to provide the necessaries of life, and is due to be sentenced in October). - 27-02-25: Yvonne Chapman, 66, Onerahi. - 15-03-25: Toby Adams, 62, Whangārei. - 15-03-25: Estene Rapatini, Kaikohe. - 15 or 16-04-25: Archibald McKenzie, 63, Te Tii (Kerikeri). - 09-05-25: Geoffrey Ware, 55, Parakao. - 21-05-25: Catalya Tangimetua-Pepene, 3, Kaikohe. - 21-05-25: Daniel Hepehi, 77, Utakura Valley (Horeke).
RNZ News
01-08-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Lack of planning led to Kaitāia's aquifer project budget blow-out and delays, review finds
Work gets underway in 2020 on a pipeline bringing bore water to Kaitāia's water treatment plant. Photo: Peter de Graaf A report on a Kaitāia water project that took 14 years instead of five and cost millions of dollars more than expected has found a lack of planning was one of the key reasons for the project's troubles. In 2011 the Far North District Council, under the former mayor, decided to drill two bores into the Sweetwater aquifer north of Kaitāia to stop the town running out of water during its frequent summer droughts. However, bore water only started flowing through the town's taps early this year, prompting councillor Mate Radich to call for a judicial review. Radich had also become frustrated by being unable to establish the project's total cost. In May this year, councillors voted to seek an internal review instead, given the high cost of a judicial review. The report, presented at Thursday's council meeting in Kaikohe, finally provided a definitive project cost of $18,016,070. Of that, just $2.4 million was spent developing the initial bore site from 2011-17. The bulk of the money, $14.9m, was spent on bore improvements and pipeline construction between 2020 and 2024. A significant part of that, just under $2.5m, went on "access costs" including land purchase ($250,000) and easements/compensation payments to landowners ($1.63m). Another $708,000 was spent this year on a membrane bio-reactor treatment trial, when it became apparent Kaitāia's existing treatment plant was unsuited to the silica-rich water from the aquifer. The town's water is usually drawn from the drought-sensitive Awanui River. The money came from rates and reserves ($3.3m), loans ($11.7m) and external grants ($3m, mostly from the Provincial Growth Fund). The report found the key reason for the delays was "the absence of a single, over-arching project plan". The project lacked a proper business case, which would have identified all the components required, provided an overview of the expected cost and delivery timeframe, and established key milestones for reporting and decision making. Failing to engage early with affected property owners and mana whenua forced re-designs and cost time, while the use of external project managers increased the expense. The report also found delays resulted from inadequate asset management and the "stop-start effect" caused by staff turnover. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
NZ Herald
01-08-2025
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
Kerikeri's world-class events facility, the Turner Centre, turns 20
'I remember driving into Kerikeri, what I thought was a reasonably small town, and seeing this massive events centre. And I was like, 'Wow, these guys are lucky'. Little did I know a few years later I'd be up here running the place. Careful what you wish for, eh?' While that initial surprise may have worn off after three years in the job – following a stint running Wellington's popular CubaDupa festival – Paul said he still found it remarkable. 'For a town under 10,000 people, to have a 400-seat theatre and an event centre that can accommodate 1000 people is just amazing. It's probably one of the very few towns around the world that [has] a facility of this size for the population.' With the Turner Centre widely regarded as the best performing arts venue north of Auckland, many touring groups bypassed Whangārei and headed straight for little Kerikeri instead. 'It's meant that we've had access to performances that you would never otherwise get in a small town. The capability of the stage and the capacity of the fly tower and the rigging system means we can bring up the likes of the Royal New Zealand Ballet or the [New Zealand] Symphony Orchestra.' The Kerikeri-based Northern Dance Academy perform The Nutcracker in 2015. Photo / Peter de Graaf The other thing that made the Turner Centre unusual was that it was planned and paid for by locals, not by the council or Government. 'That's a big part of the Turner Centre story. The whole building was built and fundraised by the community. So there's a real investment in the place, and that's why we see it so well attended.' The dream began in the 1970s when arts enthusiasts John Dalton and Doug Turner were putting on shows in the Memorial Hall, a possum-infested former fruit-packing shed. As the population and interest in the arts grew in the 1980s, they decided something bigger and better was needed. Doug Turner in 2011. Photo / Peter de Graaf Aided by fellow volunteers, they spent the next two decades planning, lobbying, cajoling and fundraising. What was initially known as The Centre at Kerikeri was opened on August 5, 2005, by Prime Minister at the time, Helen Clark. Its bold design, by local architect Martyn Evans, included a distinctive swooping roof to create space for stage machinery. The roof also gave the centre its early nickname, 'the ski ramp'. John Dalton died in 2012, followed by Doug Turner just late last year. The venue was renamed the Turner Centre in 2011; the main auditorium had already been named after Dalton. The centre's distinctive roof led to its nickname, "the ski ramp". Photo / Peter de Graaf, RNZ Turner's daughter, Susan Corbett, said her father would have loved to see this weekend's 20th anniversary show. 'He would have thought it was absolutely wonderful. And he'd be very pleased to see that everything that he and John dreamt about all those years ago has come to fruition, and is still happening – and in very exciting ways with Gerry keeping things moving on.' Corbett said her parents owned Kerikeri's Cathay Cinema for 35 years. They would host art exhibitions and plays at the cinema before joining Dalton organising shows in the Memorial Hall. Corbett said their legacy showed the value of dreaming big. 'Why not dream big? And it's just as well they did, because we probably wouldn't be able to afford it today. Their dream has happened, and the community has got this wonderful asset because of it.' A scene from Kerikeri Theatre Company's The Sound of Music in 2021. Photo / Peter de Graaf In total, building the two stages of the Turner Centre – The Plaza event centre was completed in 2012 – cost around $20 million. Gerry Paul said a commercial building expert had told him building the same venue today would cost more than $100m. Operating a large venue in a small town was not without its problems, however. In 2024, with rising maintenance costs and the after-effects of the Covid pandemic threatening to overwhelm the Kerikeri Civic Trust, the Far North District Council took over ownership of the building. The trust was still responsible for equipment, staff and programming. In the past year, Paul said the centre had been used by 43,000 people, had 558 bookings and given away 5000 free event tickets to youth. A shift since 2022 towards greater inclusion had included a series of 'pay what you can' events and initiatives such as community kapa haka. Bay of Islands College cultural group Te Roopu o Pewhairangi perform at the Turner Centre's 10th anniversary celebration in 2015. Photo / Peter de Graaf John Oszajca, a US-born actor and singer-songwriter who now lived in Kerikeri, said the town was 'incredible lucky' to have a venue like the Turner Centre. Now the president of Kerikeri Theatre Company, Oszajca said he had performed at the centre as a musician and actor, as well as bringing plays to life on the stage. One of his personal highlights was co-producing the musical Little Shop of Horrors in 2024. He said the venue had become a second home to him. 'I think having high-calibre performing arts, which you couldn't have without a venue like this, makes the quality of life notably better. It's one thing to live in a beautiful town. It's another thing to live in a beautiful town that has amenities, and it's another thing again to live in a town that offers inspiration to the people that live there, both as artists and as patrons.' The centre had also served as a springboard for young performers who had gone on to forge careers in the arts. One of those hoping to follow in their footsteps is 17-year-old Jack Laird, a Year 13 student at Kerikeri High. Laird had just played the part of Scuttle the Seagull in The Little Mermaid; this Saturday he would be one of more than 100 performers taking part in the centre's 20th anniversary show. On this occasion he would be playing drums for hard rock band Bandwidth Riot, winners of the recent Far North Smokefreerockquest. Having a venue like the Turner Centre meant a lot to Kerikeri youth, he said. 'It's so nice to have that venue, that outlet, to be creative and just give us a voice. I don't know what we'd do without the Turner Centre.' Also performing in Saturday night's anniversary show would be the Bay of Islands Singers, Kerikeri Theatre Company, Taylah Barker from Fly My Pretties, a duo from Americana folk band T Bone, local rocker Merv Pinny and Ngāti Rehia Community Kapa Haka, with local legend Troy Kingi the headline act. - RNZ
RNZ News
29-07-2025
- Climate
- RNZ News
Thousands without power across Northland due to wild weather
weather Northland 12 minutes ago Thousands of homes have been without power across Northland as what has been described as an 'atmospheric funnel', hits Aoteaora. Northland reporter Peter de Graaf spoke to Charlotte Cook.
Otago Daily Times
24-07-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Man fined for harassing sea lion on Catlins beach
By Peter de Graaf of RNZ A Southland man has been fined $400 for harassing a sea lion in an incident that appalled nature lovers in the Catlins earlier this year. In January, residents of Tautuku Beach, on the South Otago coast, reported seeing a group of motorists and trail bike riders taunting a sea lion for two successive days. A ranger's report obtained by RNZ stated a ute was repeatedly driven at the sea lion, the driver using the clutch and brakes to "lunge" towards the animal and provoke it into responding. Riders were also seen driving in circles around the sea lion. At the time the Department of Conservation (Doc) said it was making enquiries after being provided with a vehicle's licence plate details. This week Doc Murihiku operations manager John McCarroll told RNZ a Southland man had since admitted to his involvement in the Tautuku Beach incident. "After speaking to this person and a neutral witness, we are satisfied that there was no contact with the sea lion at any stage, nor were there "doughnuts" performed around the sea lion on the vehicle's departure," he said. "After legal review, a $400 infringement notice was issued to the offender for disturbing a sea lion, in breach of the Marine Mammals Protection Act 1978." The incident led to calls - including by outgoing mayor Brian Cadogan - to reconsider banning vehicles from Catlins beaches. A ban was proposed by the Clutha District Council in 2023 but dropped following a social media backlash. Councillors will now revisit the issue after the October local elections. The Tautuku Beach incident is only one of many involving endangered sea lions in the Catlins, a stretch of coast renowned for its wildlife. In October last year a female known as Jade was shot, and her pup was also shot a few days later. The pup was left to a lingering death in the Catlins Estuary. In November a third sea lion was stabbed on Waipati Beach and had to be euthanised. That prompted the New Zealand Sea Lion Trust to double its reward for information about the killings to $12,000. The initial report about the Tautuku Beach incident stated the motorists had left by the time rangers arrived and the sea lion was dead. However, a necroscopy found the animal died of other causes, most likely from injuries inflicted by another sea lion. It could also not be confirmed whether the dead sea lion was the same one that was being harassed earlier. Only about 12,000 New Zealand sea lions remain, making it the world's rarest sea lion species.
