NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Trio's painful return to scene of Blake's murder

By Catherine Masters
Property Journalist·
2 Feb, 2002 10:50 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

By CATHERINE MASTERS

MACAPA - They stand on the wobbly pier leading to the tiny port headquarters at the mouth of the Amazon River with the dreadful memories of the night their friend and captain was murdered running through their heads.

It was from here that they had made a desperate emergency call on that night of mad panic in December.

And gazing at where Seamaster was moored about 500m off Fazendinha, they remember the frantic mayday call, praying for an outside chance that Sir Peter Blake, shot in the back by pirates, could be revived when their own resuscitation efforts had failed.

But no one answered. When they set out by boat in the dead of night to search for help they had to make themselves heard above a soccer match blaring out on the television.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"It was like an American B grade movie," says Geoff Bullock.

"You couldn't believe it. There were guns and people, it was just horrible."

For Mr Bullock and crew mates Rodger Moore and Leon Sefton, this return to Macapa was gruelling.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The day before they had spent 17 hours at the federal court waiting for their turn to give evidence.

Mr Sefton, after holding himself together throughout the harrowing court hearing, was shattered the next afternoon.

He had had to wait the longest of the three New Zealanders before giving his testimony 11 hours later.

"It was hard to come back to Macapa for all of us," he said. "I found it personally quite tough. It didn't really sink in until we actually arrived here.

"I'm extremely drained. It was a hell of a long day."

Still jet-lagged from a 48-hour flight, Mr Bullock, Mr Sefton and the Brazilian chef on the Seamaster voyage waited in a back room with nothing to read while Mr Moore gave evidence.

Then they were called in one by one.

"It was almost like being sent to prison," says Mr Sefton. "I was exhausted before I got into the court room."

Before Mr Bullock left Auckland he said he never wanted to return to Macapa. At Fazendinha, though, he said they had been given wonderful treatment this time.

But Macapa was not a nice place to be. "It's a Third World town."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The journey from the airport had brought a lot of memories back.

"Memories of Rodger and I driving in an ambulance in the middle of the night down that road shook me up a little bit more than I thought they would."

Both men had been injured. Mr Bullock had a bullet wound to his back that needed 14 stitches and Mr Moore had swelling on his face where he had been hit so hard with a pistol he fell unconscious on the deck.

Mr Bullock says no one will ever know if Sir Peter did the right thing by rushing for his rifle when the bandits boarded his boat.

Sir Peter made a split-second decision to defend crew who had guns held to their heads as the bandits demanded money and watches. This may have cost him his life.

But it may also have saved the lives of the other nine aboard.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"We'll never know," says Mr Bullock. "There are arguments for and against getting firearms but you've every right to protect the ship. Who knows, we might all have been murdered in cold blood if it hadn't taken place."

A BBC documentary is to be made on Sir Peter's life and its makers may ask Mr Bullock to return to Macapa once more.

The Seamaster crew had no comments to make about the court process but thanked the Brazilian authorities and said they were confident justice would be served on the six bandits charged with armed robbery leading to death.

This charge carries 20 to 30 years in jail but the federal judge, Anselmo Goncalves da Silva, told the Herald he has the final call on whether the charge is valid, what might replace it and what the sentence will be.

The bandits are still to present their defence to him, probably later this month, but have already admitted the robbery.

Sir Peter's partner in blakexpeditions and Mr Sefton's father, Alan Sefton, says a return trip to the Amazon is definitely among future plans.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Its beauty and importance to the world's environment meant it had to be preserved for future generations.

According to the blakexpeditions' website, Seamaster is in England, awaiting further plans.

Mr Sefton said the events in Macapa had made blakexpeditions even more determined that Sir Peter's work would go on.

Peter Blake, 1948-2001

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

Premium
New Zealand

'100% a crisis': More than 900 women wait for specialist gynaecology care in Hawke’s Bay

07 Jul 06:00 PM
New Zealand

How a routine traffic stop exposed a Snapchat rapist who attacked a 13yo

07 Jul 06:00 PM
Premium
Opinion

John Gascoigne: Superannuation will remain affordable and sustainable

07 Jul 06:00 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

Premium
'100% a crisis': More than 900 women wait for specialist gynaecology care in Hawke’s Bay

'100% a crisis': More than 900 women wait for specialist gynaecology care in Hawke’s Bay

07 Jul 06:00 PM

'Doctors aren’t even referring because they’re like, ‘you’re not going to get seen’.'

How a routine traffic stop exposed a Snapchat rapist who attacked a 13yo

How a routine traffic stop exposed a Snapchat rapist who attacked a 13yo

07 Jul 06:00 PM
Premium
John Gascoigne: Superannuation will remain affordable and sustainable

John Gascoigne: Superannuation will remain affordable and sustainable

07 Jul 06:00 PM
Truck driver back at work and walking again after surviving fatal crash

Truck driver back at work and walking again after surviving fatal crash

07 Jul 06:00 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP