Paedophile's bans revealed

By ANGELA GREGORY

A convicted paedophile released from jail under intense public scrutiny is banned from unsupervised contact with children.

The man slipped out of Manawatu Prison yesterday after completing a 10-year sentence for the rape of a 23-month-old girl.

He is to live at his mother's home in Palmerston North.

The Parole Board revealed his conditions last night.

The list was kept secret while the board considered objections from the man's lawyer to them being made public.

All the conditions will apply for six months - the maximum time the justice system can impose controls on the man because he has served his full sentence.

They include his having no contact with children under 16 unless he is supervised by an adult, approved by a probation officer, who is aware of his offending.

He must also attend psychological counselling and have no unsupervised access to the internet or to email.

But Commissioner for Children Roger McClay said keeping the man locked up was the only way to ensure children were safe.

Mr McClay told the Herald he wanted urgent retrospective legislation to ensure the man was kept in jail or a secure psychiatric unit until officials were satisfied he was no longer a risk.

This was the only practical way of preventing further offending.

"I do not want to see him sacrificing another child before he is finally put away for good," Mr McClay said.

"He has already affected the lives of a 6-year-old and a baby."

Palmerston North Mayor Mark Bell-Booth yesterday demanded answers from local Labour MP and Social Services Minister Steve Maharey.

"It is not acceptable for the community of Palmerston North to be left with a person who has such a high risk of reoffending," he said.

Mr Maharey met Justice Minister Phil Goff and Corrections Minister Paul Swain yesterday, but would not comment on their discussions.

The Herald is not naming the paedophile for legal reasons.

His lawyer, John Rowan, QC, said on National Radio yesterday that media speculation and comments by politicians were putting more pressure on his client.

Suggestions the man would reoffend were "out of line".

"They simply add to the pressure on him," Mr Rowan said.

"The fact that he has co-operated with the police in agreeing that neighbours be notified, satisfactorily completed the programme [rehabilitation programme for child sex offenders] at Kia Marama, completed a further range of programmes while in prison, and is co-operating entirely and working with the probation people who will be responsible for him on his release ...

"All can give some, but clearly not complete, confidence to the issue of possible further offending."

The man had given police permission to notify his future neighbours about his arrival, which he did not have to do, Mr Rowan said.


Parole conditions:


The offender must:

* Live at an approved address
* Attend psychological and sexual offending counselling
* Stay away from children under 16 unless carefully supervised.
* Attend an anger management course.
* Have no contact with victims without approval.