Author: Press Room
A lawyer for the man who lit the fatal Loafers Lodge blaze says for the jury to accept the Crown’s case, “massive guesswork and speculation” would be involved.The 50-year-old defendant, whose name is suppressed, is charged with five counts of murder and one of arson after setting the Wellington hostel alight on 16 May, 2023.His lawyers say the man – who has schizophrenia and has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity – lit the fire when he was experiencing serious psychotic symptoms.But the Crown says he knew lighting the fire was wrong, and he did so because he did…
By Lillian Hanly of RNZ Prime Minister Christopher Luxon ranks 15th in Cabinet in a survey of senior business leaders who are also casting doubt on New Zealand’s economic performance. The New Zealand Herald has released its latest Mood of the Boardroom, which attracted 150 responses from chief executives and other leaders. Luxon and Finance Minister Nicola Willis were out of Cabinet’s top 10 performers, according to the results. He scored on average 2.96 out of 5 where one is “not impressive” and five is “very impressive”. Herald head of business Fran O’Sullivan told RNZ’s Morning Report programme today there…
A senior first responder has pleaded not guilty to multiple child exploitation charges in the Christchurch District Court.The man, whose name and occupation are suppressed, faces five charges relating to the possession and exportation of child exploitation material. He was arrested in June following a Customs investigation.Lawyer Craig Ruane told the court his client would plead not guilty to all charges and had elected a trial by jury. Ruane said the man’s employment was terminated because the charges had brought his employer into disrepute, and that an employment process was underway to address the matter.He added that the man had…
By Russell Palmer of RNZ Employers seem to be on board with the government’s proposals to replace the Holidays Act, but unions and opposition parties fear they could trample workers’ rights and entitlements. Workplace Relations Minister Brooke van Velden yesterday announced the plan to make annual leave and sick leave pro-rated. For every hour worked, employees would get a fraction of an hour of annual and sick leave. Those banked hours could then be used to take time off – again, measured in hours. It means people could take only part of a day off if they get sick, or…
A police officer has been convicted with assault with a weapon following an unlawful arrest in which excessive force was used against a motorcycle rider not wearing a helmet in Auckland last year.The Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) oversaw a police investigation into the allegations, with a summary report released on Tuesday.The officer attempted to stop the rider at a gas station in April 2024, using their patrol car to pin the bike against bollards protecting the gas pump.”The police investigation established that the officer intended to stop the rider because they were not wearing a helmet,” the report summary…
After years of payroll failures, billions in remediation payments and persistent calls for reform from businesses and unions alike, the Government is scrapping and replacing the Holidays Act in a move it says will finally fix New Zealand’s “broken” leave system.Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden revealed today that Cabinet had agreed to repeal and replace the Holidays Act 2003 with a new Employment Leave Act.The changes were aimed at making leave calculations more straightforward and ensuring that workers received their correct entitlements.”Full-time and part-time workers will start earning annual and sick leave in direct proportion to the…
A company co-owned by a former All Black which ran a Canterbury restaurant has gone into liquidation owing more than $450,000 to creditors. Tap And Go Ltd had operated the Grain & Grape establishment in the small township of Darfield. The New Zealand Companies Office lists Murray Davie and Bernadette Taylor as directors and equal shareholders of Tap And Go. A previous company owned by the business partners, Kick for Touch Ltd, went into liquidation in 2023, after a Rolleston bar and restaurant struggled through Covid-19 restrictions. Mr Davie, 69, is a former All Black who made the national team…
A woman has been guilty of murdering her two children, whose bodies were found in suitcases years after their deaths. Hakyung Lee – also known as Ji Eun ‘Jasmine’ Lee – faced two murder charges over the deaths of her children Yuna and Minu Jo in 2018.The bodies of Minu and Yuna, aged six and eight at the time of their deaths, were found in suitcases almost four years after they were killed, when a family bought the contents of an abandoned storage locker in an online auction.A family photo of Ian Jo, Hakyung Lee, Yuna Jo and Minu Jo.…
A mother has been found guilty of murder after admitting killing her two young children and storing their bodies in suitcases in an Auckland lockup. Yvonne Tahana attended much of the trial and reflects on the harrowing evidence heard in court room 6.Warning: This story contains details about mental health and suicide that may disturb some readers.For three years, the existence of little Minu Jo and his older sister Yuna had been reduced in the public consciousness to the awful mental image of small bodies in suitcases.Almost as if they hadn’t been here, except for the mere fact of their…
Cruise ship visits are down by about 15% in Dunedin this summer and Mickey and Minnie Mouse are not going to make an appearance as tourism businesses face a hit in the pocket. But the decision to continue to sail into Milford Sound saved the cruise business in the South, one Port Otago executive says. The schedule for cruise ships across the country was released this week and Dunedin has a schedule of 79 ships coming to the city, compared with 94 scheduled visits last year. Port Otago general manager customer Craig Usher said the numbers were not great but…