There is a warrant out for 28-year-old Naya Ropiu Fabian Wharekura's arrest after he breached electronic bail conditions. Photo / Police
Police have issued a warrant for an accused murderer and are actively investigating his whereabouts after he breached his electronic bail conditions.
Naya Ropiu Fabian Wharekura, of Ngāruawāhia, is accused of murdering Chad Parekura on Don Street in Invercargill on April 23 last year.
A police spokesperson said police were actively investigating the 28-year-old’s whereabouts.
If anyone sees him, they are advised not to approach him, and to report any sightings to police via 111.
Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis said decisions around bail were for the courts to make.
“Police will now be working to find the offender, with Corrections providing any assistance as needed.”
National’s police and Corrections spokesman Mark Mitchell said electronic bail had been used far too frequently by the Labour Government, putting people at risk.
“It’s very clear that there are people that have been charged with or convicted of serious violent offending that should be in prison, and not out in the community on electronic bail,” Mitchell said.
“And now we’ve just got another very clear example of that, obviously, with an allegedly violent offender charged with murder who has now absconded again, and the police are having to take up their resources in terms of trying to locate that person and get them into custody.”
Mitchell said electronic bail was the “completely wrong thing to do” when someone had been accused of violent offending.
Electronic bail has been a contentious topic of discussion recently, the debate sparked when it was revealed a man who opened fire at a downtown Auckland construction site was on electronic bail at the time of the shooting.
Matu Reid was serving a sentence of home detention for kicking and strangling a woman, leaving her with a broken bone in her neck.
He then went on to kill two people and injure a police officer in June before he died exchanging gunfire with police at the construction site, where he had the approval to work as part of his sentence.
Also earlier this year, the Herald revealed criminals being electronically monitored were “regularly” wrapping tinfoil around their ankle bracelets and re-offending, according to an internal police report.
Examples of the practice, known as ‘foiling’, include a man leaving his home undetected and allegedly going to his ex-partner’s, where he lay in wait and held her against her will, assaulting her multiple times, threatening to kill her and attempting to stab her.
Youths have also been foiling their bracelets before doing ram raids and smash-and-grabs.
The police risk assessment report, EM Bail - “Foiling” and Monitoring Limitations, says public safety will continue to be compromised because of a “combination of heightened demand and systemic monitoring limitations”.
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