David Tamihere recall has ulterior motives | The Jackal

7 Mar 2012

David Tamihere recall has ulterior motives

Today, the NZ Herald reported:

Convicted killer David Tamihere has pleaded not guilty to breaching his parole conditions by flying over a crime scene with a television crew.

Tamihere, 58, appeared in Waitakere District Court this morning on the charge after TVNZ's Sunday programme flew him over a historic Coromandel murder scene, a possible breach of his parole conditions.

Tamihere, who was today ordered to reappear in court in May, could be sent back to jail if he is found guilty.

He is also likely to face a Parole Board recall hearing in April over the flight.

What a complete waste of time and money. There is absolutely no grounds for a recall here, because David Tamihere did not physically go onto the property his parole conditions stipulate are out of bounds.

The fact that the Corrections Department has completely overreacted makes me highly suspicious as to their motivation.

David Tamihere has continued to profess his innocence and has requested a retrial on the December 1990 conviction for the murders of Swedish tourists Sven Urban Höglin, 23, and his fiancée Heidi Birgitta Paakkonen, 21.

A recall to prison would make a retrial more difficult for Tamihere to achieve.

There is good evidence to suggest Tamihere did not commit the murders, and that at least some of the evidence was planted, perhaps even by the Police.

Tamihere said that the Detective Inspector in charge of the investigation John Hughes, who has since died, was nicknamed `The Gardener' by prisoners.

"He had a bad habit of planting things ... he was well known for fitting people up."

Tamihere is just reiterating a widely known and accepted fact.