The 66 year old man accused of raping and drugging teenage girls has been found guilty.

Six of the women were from the township of Kaikoura, the others from in and around Blenhiem, and one from the North Island. They were aged between 15-18 at the time of the attacks.

We highlighted the case a few days ago (police raid Kaikoura drug den) and wish to remind parents of the importance of keeping their children safe from predators. New Zealand isn’t as benevolent as you’d think.

His name must still be suppressed because the press hasn’t published it yet, nor have they given any indication of his occupation. There are some very hard questions to be asked if that information is not released. The man has been in custody since 2012.

Who is he?

Our guess is that’s he’s connected to youth in some way. He’s a community figure in a position of trust (minister, doctor, police officer etc.) or an ex-teacher. What type of occupations would put him in contact with vulnerable young women?

News articles have revealed the man owns a boat and works in the same industry as the father of one of his victims. One of the assaults took place in that boat on the Marlborough Sounds, and others in his campervan near Kaikoura. source.

 

Here’s what the MSM had to say about the case:

A Marlborough man who sexually assaulted troubled teenage girls, some nearly unconscious on drugs and alcohol, has been found guilty on 35 charges involving drugs and sexual assault.

The 66-year-old was found not guilty on a further 11 charges after the trial in the High Court at Nelson.

The 46 charges  he was facing stemmed from allegations from 10 complainants spanning 29 years, and included rape, sexual violation, indecent assault, sexual grooming and supplying class A and C drugs.

The court heard the man offered shelter to girls, aged 15 to 18, from broken or troubled homes. They would be offered a place to stay, sometimes a job, and help getting “on the right track”.

Some of the girls admitted consensual sex with him, while others denied anything more than using the man for a place to stay, money, drugs and alcohol.

Most of the girls continued to stay with him, despite his inappropriate actions, because it was better than going home…

After a four week trial in which 10 women gave evidence from behind a screen, he was found guilty of after about 11 and a half hours of deliberations by the jury.

Nearly 130 charges were initially laid against him following his arrest on August 29, 2012. They were later reduced by Crown prosecutor Mark O’Donoghue to 48 charges go to trial. A further two were dropped during the trial.

Complainants alleged offending from as far back as the 80s, up until his arrest in 2012.

The man’s trial took just over three weeks, heard by Justice Alan MacKenzie and the jury, with evidence from about 50 witnesses…” source

Update 12 Dec 2014

According to a report a suppression will remain until an appeal is heard next year.

…After the court had heard the verdicts, and the sentencing date had been set, Harrison asked the judge to continue the interim name suppression order that had been in place since he first appeared in court in 2012.

Publication of his name could prejudice a further trial scheduled to be heard in the Blenheim District Court, he said.

O’Donoghue said the Crown would not be going ahead with that trial in light of yesterday’s convictions, as the charges were minor in comparison.

The case was “high in public interest” and he argued that the man should be named.

After further discussions in chambers, MacKenzie gave Harrison until 5pm to appeal against a decision to lift the suppression order.

The court later confirmed that Harrison had lodged the appeal, and interim name suppression would continue until the appeal was heard next year…source

 

Here’s a news report from the time he was arrested: Man charged with drug sex offences.

Related

Police Raid Kaikoura Drug Den

…Six teenage girls from Kaikoura were subject to sexual assault by a 66 year old man who plied them with drugs (including LSD, cannabis and BZP) and alcohol. He is also alleged to have taken indecent photographs of them. He has been given name suppression while he answers to 46 charges in the Nelson High Court. More than 50 witnesses will be called during the trial. (source).