Wife-killer threat to his new bride

Warwick Bennett and his second wife, Deborah, have an unresolved issue, the Parole Board says. Photo / Supplied

A former Air Force sergeant who murdered his first wife and buried her in a forest is back in prison because he "poses an undue risk of harm" to his new wife.

Warwick Keith Bennett was convicted in November 1994 of the murder of his 24-year-old wife, Yvonne, who went missing from their home at the Hobsonville Air Base in April 1982.

Three months after the killing, Bennett returned to Woodhill State Forest at night to dig up the body and rebury it in a deeper grave.

The court heard he was a jealous and possessive man who murdered his wife because she threatened to leave him, but was later plagued with nightmares about the killing.

The Weekend Herald can reveal that Bennett was paroled in 2004, and married Deborah Prescott.

Last month, he was recalled to prison by the Parole Board after his probation officer said Bennett posed an undue risk of harm to his second wife "as a result of relationship difficulties between them".

The officer also said Bennett failed to disclose an allegation of assaulting his wife in April 2007.

The relationship difficulties of the couple - who lived in Christchurch - stem from an incident in February.

Bennett told the Parole Board that his wife, who was drunk, gave her cellphone number to a man in a bar.

"The issue, Mr Bennett confirmed to us today, was not completely resolved between them," the Parole Board ruling said.

"We have some concern about the circumstances leading to Ms [Prescott's] departure from the matrimonial home in early March 2011."

The Parole Board was also given a confidential report from a police officer in the Christchurch Family Safety Team.

The report was unsworn, and Bennett's lawyers warned of the "usual dangers of hearsay evidence and warn of the likelihood of exaggeration or embellishment in evidence of this kind".

The Parole Board decided the confidential information should be taken into account.

"On our reading and consideration of the totality of the material now before us, we are satisfied that the grounds are established, namely that Mr Bennett does pose an undue risk to the safety of the community," it said in its decision.

Bennett will be considered again for parole in September.

In 1982, the Air Force crewman told police investigating the disappearance of his first wife that she had left him.

In fact, he killed her when she threatened divorce, buried her in Woodhill Forest, then concocted an elaborate cover-up story. He was the prime suspect but police could not find Mrs Bennett's body.

In 1992, an associate of Bennett contacted police to say he had boasted that her body would never be found.

Bennett was arrested and later led detectives to the grave deep in the forest where he had reburied Mrs Bennett.

He admitted manslaughter, claiming the death was accidental. But he was found guilty of murder after a trial in the High Court at Auckland.

The jury heard Bennett had earlier accused his wife of having affairs.

The Crown said Bennett had a deliberate plan to elude police, feigning shock and making it appear that Mrs Bennett was at home on the night of the murder.

He also left a bogus note for her pleading with her to come back.

Possessive, jealous ... it's the classic profile of an abuser, says family violence expert

Warwick Bennett's obsessive possessiveness and jealousy fit the classic profile of an abusive partner, says a family violence advocate.

Former probation officer Jane Drumm is executive director of Shine (Safer Homes in New Zealand Everyday), the country's largest family violence organisation.

She said Bennett fitted an extreme version of the most common profile of people - usually men - who abuse their partners, the "obsessed offender".

His reported possessiveness and irrational jealousy were classic indicators of this profile.

"For women caught in these relationships, what initially seems flatteringly loving devoted attention can very quickly become terrifying as their lives become restricted and isolated under a regime of constant monitoring, rules, suspicion and punishment," Ms Drumm said.

"Obsessed offenders" viewed partners and children as possessions to control.

"The most dangerous time for these women is when they attempt to leave or in the months, even years, following, with stalking, threats and serious assaults more likely to occur."

Threats should be taken seriously and anyone worried about their relationship could call Shine's free helpline, 0508-744-633