Michael McGrath's mother, Adrienne McGrath reads her impact statement. Photo / Alden Williams
It was a “massive moment” for Michael McGrath’s family as his killer and childhood friend was jailed for life with a minimum non-parole period of 17 years.
David Benbow, 54, denied killing McGrath in the Christchurch suburb of Halswell in 2017.
In October, after an earlier hung jury, Benbow was found guilty in the High Court at Christchurch. The Crown alleged Benbow murdered the 49-year-old after finding out he was in a relationship with his partner of 17 years, Joanna Green.
He was sentenced in the same court yesterday.
Senior New Zealand Herald crime reporter Sam Sherwood has been following the case for years and told The Front Page the sentencing was a massive moment for McGrath’s family- “to see the man who murdered their son and brother jailed for life after what has been a long seven-year journey.”
McGrath’s brother Simon McGrath spoke briefly to media outside of the court and said it had been a hell of a long journey, Sherwood said.
But he wanted a “no body, no parole” sentence, Sherwood said.
McGrath’s body and the firearm the Crown says Benbow used to kill him have never been found.
His brother spoke of the “harrowing endless searching” he did for his body, much in “previously unknown territory”.
Sherwood said it would be fair to say authorities would also never give up on finding McGrath’s body.
“It’s the one thing left, right? There has been a conviction, a sentence, but it’s the one thing remaining that would finally give Michael’s family closure.”
But Sherwood also thought police were realistic too.
“In the sense that they have searched- they’ve searched everywhere they can think of- and that only one person actually knows the answer to that question and as of now anyway, it doesn’t appear that person is willing to disclose that.”
Sherwood suspected this would not be the end for Benbow and said it was fair to presume there would be appeals following the sentencing.
Listen to the full episode to hear more from Sam Sherwood about what it was like for him as a journalist giving evidence at Benbow’s first trial.
The Front Page is a daily news podcast from the New Zealand Herald, available to listen to every weekday from 5am. This episode was presented by Georgina Campbell, a Wellington-based reporter who has a particular interest in local government, transport, and seismic issues. She joined the Herald in 2019 after working as a broadcast journalist.
You can follow the podcast at iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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