A convicted rapist moves into your neighbourhood. What would you do?

By KELLY MAKIHA in Rotorua
Convicted rapist Tihema Galvin feels he and his family are being run out of Lake Okareka because of locals' fears they are behind a recent crime wave.

But the Galvins say they are innocent.

Mr Galvin spent nine years behind bars after being convicted in 1992 of a pack rape which also saw eight of his fellow patched Mongrel Mob gang members found guilty.

While inside, Mr Galvin turned over a new leaf.

He is out of the gang, is a member of the Mormon church and is working fulltime as a builder in Rotorua.

Mr Galvin and his wife Sarah moved to Lake Okareka in November - at the same time burglaries and thefts in the community rose dramatically.

Word quickly spread around the community about Mr Galvin's past which coincided with an article in the Daily Post that said many members of the community had been alarmed by news that a prominent gang member had moved into the area.

Within days, the family was sent a letter by the agency acting for their landlord to leave the premises by March 21.

But the Galvins say they want to stay, despite how some locals feel about them.

While few residents spoken to by the Daily Post wanted to comment about their feelings towards the Galvins, one resident admitted the community had probably been too tough on Mr Galvin. They say their feelings were more directed at the Galvins' teenaged children and their "hangers on".

"We still want to see them go because of them," the resident said.

Mrs Galvin admits one of their sons, a 16-year-old, is a "rat bag" who has been in trouble with the law but she denies he or his friends have had anything to do with crime in the area.

They say their son doesn't live with them but visits them.

"He is our son," Mrs Galvin said. "Of course he comes here."

The resident, who didn't want to be named, said it was only human nature the community would react the way it did.

"It was mainly because of the timing of everything.

"We were a totally crime-free area and suddenly when they arrive, bingo, we have all this crime."

He said some residents had changed their tune about Mr Galvin after he addressed a public meeting at Okareka on February 28.

"Shortly after he moved in, tongues started wagging but we realise now he has straightened himself out. They seemed genuine folk when he spoke at the meeting.

"It took a lot of courage to do that ... whether we had a right to think what we did or not I don't know, but it's more the hangers on we are worried about."

Senior Sergeant Brent Crowe of the Rotorua police said there was an increase in dishonesty offences in Okareka in November, December and January but the situation appeared to have eased during February and March.