Family of victim moves away ahead of brutal gang member John-Boy Rakete's release from prison

John-Boy Rakete - wearing his Mongrel Mob patch - was filling his BMW with petrol when he exchanged words with his victim. Moments late, Nigel Landreth was lying prone of the forecourt. Photo / file

A gang member whose attack led to the death of a Dunedin man will be released from prison tomorrow.

But the family of the victim have not been told whether 27-year-old John-Boy Rakete will be living in Dunedin and have decided to move to the North Island to avoid any potential of a chance meeting.

"We don't want to see him or hear about him or deal with him," said Nigel Landreth's sister, Michelle.

"What he did was sick, evil and disgusting."

Patched Mongrel Mob member Rakete was jailed for two years two months following the attack at a South Dunedin petrol station forecourt in 2018.

A single punch knocked Nigel Landreth over and he smashed his head on the concrete.

John-Boy Rakete took one of the drinks the victim had bought and poured it over his face as he lay convulsing and gasping for air. Photo / Otago Daily Times

As he lay there bleeding from his ear, being tended to by a truck driver, Rakete returned and poured a soft drink on him.

Landreth died 14 months after the incident — outside the then statutory time frame for the defendant to be deemed legally responsible.

Rakete will serve the final day of his sentence today and must be released tomorrow but he will serve six months of post-release conditions.

The address at which that would happen was of some conjecture at his final Parole Board hearing, which took place last week.

The proposed location — which was redacted in documents released to the Otago Daily Times — had not been assessed as to electronic-monitoring viability.

If Rakete could not be monitored there, he would have to live outside Dunedin, panel convener Mary More said.

The uncertainty was too much for Michelle Landreth, who said she was concerned she or her mother could accidentally run into the man responsible for the death of their loved one.

They had implored the Parole Board not to allow release to Dunedin, a submission adopted by others — many of whom Michelle Landreth had never met — who took up the cause after hearing about the case.

She remained convinced Rakete should have been punished with a heavier prison term but she said she would not let negative emotions ruin her life.

"I think people have assumed that I'm angry or vengeful or bitter but I'm not that person at all," Michelle Landreth said.

She told the ODT Rakete would never get forgiveness from her family.

She hoped the move north would allow her and her mother to remember "all the good times with Nigel", away from constant reminders of their loss.

Rakete's release conditions included to submit to electronic monitoring; to live at an address approved by Probation; not to contact any victim; to inform Probation of any changes in employment status; not to possess alcohol or non-prescription drugs; to attend a psychological assessment and any treatment as directed; and to attend a reintegration meeting as directed by Probation.