Dairy owners set to stand in solidarity, the 'dangerous' Three Waters provision lawyers are calling out and healthcare pay parity in the latest New Zealand Herald headlines. Video / NZ Herald
The Prime Minister says work needs to be done to speed up getting safety measures, such as fog cannons, into dairies and other retail stores.
Jacinda Ardern told Breakfast that issues around speeding up that process to strengthen security were that insurers’ and contractors’ procedures took time.
This comes after Janak Patel was fatally stabbed during an alleged robbery at the Rose Cottage Superette in Sandringham last Wednesday.
Ardern also said that ram raid offending was decreasing due to prosecution.
“Ram raids have started coming down, the reason for that is prosecution.
”We have 1600 more police officers, we will continue to see an impact. Another thing is the crime prevention method to see businesses feel safer.
“We know we have to keep doing what we can to ensure people still feel safe in their city,” she said.
Ardern told RNZ that 70 young people have been identified as contributors to ram raids but said they have worked with half of those children, managing to get them back into education and training.
The threshold for 12 and 13-year-olds to go to court was high and Ardern said the crime committed needed to attract a penalty of at least 14 years, which includes aggravated robbery.
The slain Auckland dairy worker was farewelled yesterday at a service at Anns Funeral Home in Wiri.
Funeral-goers were told he would be remembered as a “true family man” and a “loving person who cared for everyone around him”.
The 34-year-old’s wife, parents, sisters and other family were among the mourners, as was Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern who hugged Patel’s widow Vijeta during the event.
Ardern told Breakfast she had received an invitation to attend the funeral.
“Sitting amongst his family and friends.. brings back the fact that a life has been taken and family’s lives have been shattered.”
MPs and former politicians - including Priyanca Radhakrishnan, Mark Mitchell, Michael Wood and Kawaljit Singh Bakshi – attended the service, as did Detective Inspector Scott Beard who is leading the investigation into Patel’s death.
Janak Patel. Photo / Supplied
The funeral took place shortly after police announced the arrest of a third person as part of their homicide probe. A 36-year-old man has been charged with robbery and is due to appear in Auckland District Court tomorrow.
Police also found and seized a car which was being sought in relation to the homicide investigation, Beard said on Sunday.
Police were still searching for the weapon used in Wednesday night’s alleged murder, and the drawer from the cash register that was stolen from the dairy during the incident. The clothes being worn by the man accused of the murder were also being sought, Beard said.
A 34-year-old man was arrested on Friday and charged with aggravated robbery and murder following Patel’s death.
A second man, 42, was also arrested and has been charged with robbery. Both men were remanded in custody on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Cabinet is meeting today to discuss what more can be done to combat crime, while many dairy owners plan to close their doors and stand in front of their shops for two hours to highlight the dangers they face.
Ardern said they will be discussing whether crime prevention programmes are reaching everyone they need to be and how they can work with councils more to provide security measures.
Dairy and retail workers gathered in Hamilton on Sunday to pay their respects to Patel and demand change.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern attends the funeral for Janak Patel. Photo / Akula Sharma
The master of ceremonies at the service, Mitesh Dhanji, said Patel and his wife had a “dream to run their own business”.
