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

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
    • The Great NZ Road Trip
  • 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
  • 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
    • 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
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • 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

Wrongly jailed man 'set up' - mother

Herald online
14 Apr, 2011 06:12 AM5 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

File photo / NZ Herald

File photo / NZ Herald

An autistic man wrongfully convicted of rape and jailed for more than two years is still angry despite being awarded more than $350,000 compensation today, his mother says.

Sickness beneficiary Aaron Farmer was found guilty of the rape of a 22-year-old woman in Christchurch after she picked him out from a photo montage in 2005.

His conviction was overturned in 2007 after fresh testing was carried out on DNA found on the victim.

A police detective who told Mr Farmer his DNA had been found on the victim and his clothes matched the description of the offender - when both claims were untrue - was criticised by the courts.

The man still works for the police - though not in his former role as a detective.

Associate Justice Minister Nathan Guy today formally apologised to Mr Farmer and announced he would get $351,575 to compensate him for the trauma and loss he suffered because of his wrongful conviction.

Mr Farmer told One News he would use the money to buy a house and a new motorbike.

Mr Farmer's mother Beverley Farmer told Radio New Zealand that would help the family get their lives back on track.

"The money is important to Aaron because it will give him a chance to get a life together. The apology is important to me because there are still people out there that believe otherwise because they are ignorant and do not understand what happened."

But Ms Farmer said her son was still angry about what happened.

He no longer trusted the police or the legal system, she said.

"I believe the police that were concerned were looking for an answer and they chose Aaron.

"I believe they set out to set him up right from the start - that is what I believe.

She said the conviction of her son tore the family apart.

"It destroyed our lives, it took away all my siblings. It destroyed everything."

Mr Farmer agreed, saying some family members "turned their backs" on him.

He told One News he had full sympathy for the woman he was mistakenly convicted of raping and hoped the perpetrator would be found.

However, police had no new leads on the case, One News said.

Mr Farmer said he still had "a few questions that need to be answered" by the police.

In a statement earlier today, Mr Guy said the Crown accepted a review by Robert Fisher QC showing Mr Farmer was innocent beyond reasonable doubt.

He had taken the treatment Mr Farmer received from police into consideration when deciding on the final compensation figure.

"The payment compensates Mr Farmer for the non-pecuniary losses he suffered as a result of the wrongful conviction and imprisonment. These losses include his loss of liberty, loss of reputation, loss or interruption with family or personal relationships, and mental and emotional harm.

"While the Crown's apology and offer of compensation can never completely make up for the trauma and loss Mr Farmer has suffered, I hope it can go some way in helping him and his family put this very difficult experience behind them."

Mr Guy defended New Zealand's court system as fair and effective "on the whole".

"However, the system is not infallible. When mistakes like this happen, the Government must do its best to put things right. This compensation payment to Mr Farmer shows the Government's commitment to acknowledging and addressing mistakes when they do occur."

Mr Farmer was not eligible under for compensation under Cabinet guidelines because, when quashing his conviction, the Court of Appeal originally ordered a retrial.

However, Government granted him compensation under an "extraordinary circumstances" provision, after a review proved his innocence.

His case was the first in which compensation has been paid under the provision.

The same provision is being sought by the legal team for David Bain - as he is also ineligible for compensation under Cabinet guidelines.

Since 1998, when the Cabinet guidelines were established, there have been four successful applications for compensation for wrongful conviction and imprisonment.

Police: Criticism justified

Police Assistant Commissioner Malcolm Burgess today admitted police made mistakes during the investigation.

"I think we can be justifiably criticised for the interview that was conducted. We have acknowledged there were some inadequacies in the prosecution phase of the inquiry ... in the manner in which the case was put to court."

He said it was not police practice to lie to people being interviewed during an investigation.

The evidence available to police at the time was that Mr Farmer was the likely suspect, Mr Burgess said.

The officer who conducted the interview with Mr Farmer was "moved sideways" within the force.

"I guess if your career aspirations are to be in the investigation field, that career aspiration dried up when he was moved out of the CIB. So to that extent he was (punished)."

Police were yet to decide if they would make an apology to Mr Farmer, Mr Burgess said.

"That is not something we have formally dealt with yet."

Discover more

New Zealand|crime

Science exposes unreliable evidence

28 Aug 04:00 PM
New Zealand|crime

Wrongfully convicted man talks of 'living hell'

14 Apr 05:30 PM
Opinion

Editorial: Farmer case is still wide open

16 Apr 05:30 PM
New Zealand|crime

Bain to speak at injustice conference

16 May 12:42 AM
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

How end-to-end encryption shields online child exploitation

09 May 05:00 PM
New Zealand

Morning quiz: On two-person bicycle, what is the common term for the rider in front?

09 May 05:00 PM
Premium
New Zealand

Defence Force quietly shelves SAS elite unit trained for terrorism response

09 May 05:00 PM

One tiny baby’s fight to survive

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

How end-to-end encryption shields online child exploitation

How end-to-end encryption shields online child exploitation

09 May 05:00 PM

Internal Affairs blocked over one million attempts to access illegal content last year.

Morning quiz: On two-person bicycle, what is the common term for the rider in front?

Morning quiz: On two-person bicycle, what is the common term for the rider in front?

09 May 05:00 PM
Premium
Defence Force quietly shelves SAS elite unit trained for terrorism response

Defence Force quietly shelves SAS elite unit trained for terrorism response

09 May 05:00 PM
'Like a prison': Students in revolt at posh Auckland school, principal caught on secret recording

'Like a prison': Students in revolt at posh Auckland school, principal caught on secret recording

09 May 05:00 PM
Connected workers are safer workers 
sponsored

Connected workers are safer workers 

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
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • 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