Author: Press Room

A man has been sentenced to three years and 11 months imprisonment for distributing and possessing more than 2000 objectionable images depicting the sexual exploitation and abuse of babies and children.George Stanley Fuimaono, 27, was sentenced at the Auckland District Court on Thursday after he pleaded guilty to seven representative charges in August.He was also required to register as a child sex offender.In October 2022, Fuimaono began communicating with a covert online investigator from an overseas law enforcement agency.He shared a link to an online cloud storage location which contained 287 files of child exploitation and abuse. The international law…

Cleanup efforts have begun in the South Island and lower North Island, which were battered by heavy winds yesterday. The powerful gusts toppled trees onto roads, damaged property, and left tens of thousands without power. Power teams at work in Greymouth. (Source: 1News)Local states of emergency remain in place for Canterbury and Southland. Follow 1News’ live updates of the weather events hereThis morning, crews hit the street to remove fallen trees and fix damaged energy infrastructure. Damage to a farmhouse in Culverden (Source: 1News)A man works to clear fallen trees at Tweed Reserve, Invercargill (Source: 1News)Roads closed from yesterday’s weather…

A man has been arrested and charged in connection with a series of arson attacks that struck cellphone towers across Otago – including one completely destroyed mobile site in central Wānaka.In July, a rural cellular tower in the Lindis Pass was “significantly damaged”. Earlier this month, “suspicious” fires hit cell tower sites in Wānaka.Two cell towers operated by One NZ were attacked, with one mobile site in downtown Wānaka “completely destroyed”. The telco provider said the tower would take at least four weeks to be fixed.A Spark NZ tower was also subjected to an “unsuccessful” arson attempt.Detective Senior Sergeant Regan…

Police have warned motorists to be ready for the consequences if they put lives at risk this Labour Weekend.Authorities hoped a stern warning might lead to a repeat of last year’s Labour Weekend, when no one was killed on the roads.“It’s a result that police would hope to replicate again this year,” said road policing director Superintendent Steve Greally.However, Greally noted recent weather had caused disruption around the country, citing it as a reminder to factor in the conditions – whether travelling short or long distances.Police officers would be visible throughout the country – focused on preventing poor driving behaviour…

A man has been arrested and charged with two counts of murder after a house fire killed a father and son in east Auckland earlier this month.The blaze – under investigation as a double homicide – broke out at a two-storey home on Murvale Dr in Bucklands Beach around 2.30am on October 2.Five people were inside the house at the time. Three survived, including the mother and another child, who were admitted to hospital but have been since discharged. A boarder living downstairs also escaped unharmed.The victims were 36-year-old Jung Sup Lee and his 11-year-old son Ha-il Lee.Emergency services were…

Funding for long-standing Māori news bulletin Te Karere has been slashed, while current affairs programme The Hui’s funding has been cut completely. The announcement comes from Māori media funder Te Māngai Pāho, and will see Te Karere’s funding reduced from $2.7 million to $1 million over the 2025/26 funding around. The Hui has received no funding allocation. A total of $11 million has been allocated for the next funding year, with much of it going to regional news services. They are contracted to produce weekly news stories, articles, audio for radio, and news live events. Whakaata Māori has received $1.5 million to…

White supremacist terrorist Brenton Tarrant can be called as a witness at the coronial inquest into the Christchurch mosque attacks.The High Court has dismissed an application for a judicial review of deputy chief coroner Brigitte Windley’s decision to call him to the second-phase inquest.The Australian-born terrorist is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole for the murder of 51 worshippers at Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Islamic Centre on March 15, 2019.The second-phase inquest began in October last year and is examining how the terrorist came to obtain the guns used in the massacre.It adjourned part-heard after survivors…

An Air New Zealand flight from Christchurch to Sydney was met by emergency services on arrival at Sydney Airport this morning after a technical issue was reported during the flight.Flight NZ221, operated by an Airbus A320, experienced the issue while en route across the Tasman.Air New Zealand chief safety and risk officer Nathan McGraw confirmed the incident in a statement to 1News.”NZ221 from Christchurch to Sydney reported a technical issue while in flight. Emergency services met the aircraft on arrival as a precaution. The aircraft landed safely, and our engineering team will now carry out inspections to ensure the aircraft…

A truck and car have caught fire after a crash on State Highway 25 in Waikato this morning.Police said it was alerted to the incident in Waitakaruru at about 11.20am.Fire and Emergency New Zealand said both occupants were able to get out of the vehicles that then caught fire.”Two trucks from Ngātea extinguished the fires, leaving the scene 12.40pm.”(Source: Supplied)Hato Hone St John said it responded with one ambulance and one rapid response vehicle.It assessed one patient at the scene, and another was taken to Thames Hospital in serious condition.Photos from the scene showed flames coming from the front of…

The brand-new Pirate Ship ride set sail on its maiden voyage at Rainbow’s End this morning.Dubbed Pacifica after the ocean it travelled to New Zealand on, the 13m-long ship can seat up to 50 passengers and swings 75 degrees to each side.Guests in the back rows experience a moment of weightlessness at over 20m in the air as the ship swings downward.The original Pirate Ship was decommissioned in 2017 after nearly 40 years of service, retired only due to the limited availability of replacement parts.Rainbow’s End began work in late 2022 on a replacement. The new ship was built to…