A Whangarei man has issued an open invitation to Prime Minister John Key to visit his home which looks directly at a portable cabin housing a released prisoner assessed at high risk of violent re-offending.
Arthur Alexander Gray, 51, was released from jail last week and has moved into a cabin, with no running water or electricity on family land in Lake Ora Rd, near Kamo.
Gray served a full nine-year sentence for attempting to murder (by stabbing) a backpacker in Nelson in 2003. He had attacked the backpacker 11 days after being released on parole, having served time for aggravated robbery. It has been revealed in Parliament that Gray also killed a fellow inmate while in prison. He was found not guilty of murder on grounds of self defence.
Mr Key is in Northland today and tomorrow as part of his regular regional visits around the country.
Neighbours in the area told the Northern Advocate they are terrified, with some fitting more locks and others putting cardboard up in windows to stop Mr Gray looking into their homes.