Crimes NZ
This podcast digs into the biggest crimes in New Zealand history, featuring interviews with investigators and journalists who know the cases best. It explores the details that made these cases so significant and the impact they had on the nation. With firsthand perspectives from those involved, listeners gain a deeper understanding of each crime and its aftermath.
Episodes
Case #059 - Yanfei Bao
Forty-four year old real estate agent Yanfei Bao went missing in July 2023. Jesse Mulligan talks to RNZ's award-winning crime correspondent Sam Sherwood who covered the case, which resulted in 54-year old Tingjun Cao imprisoned for life for her murder.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
Case #058 - A Tragedy in Timaru
In 2021, Lauren Dickason was found guilty of the murder of her three daughters. In this episode, Jesse Mulligan talks to Adam Burns who covered the heart-breaking case for RNZ.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
Case #057 - Michael Choy
In 2001, pizza delivery driver Michael Choy was robbed and fatally attacked by six offenders, all under the age of 17. Jesse talks with defence lawyer Marie Dyhrberg KC who represented one of the other teenagers found guilty of manslaughter for his role in the attack.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
Case #056 - Grace Millane
Grace Millane's disappearance attracted international attention and the discovery of her body in Auckland's Waitākere Ranges sent shockwaves around the world.
Jesse Kempson was eventually found guilty of her murder. Reporter Alice Wilkins covered the trial.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
Case #055 - Helen Gregory
On September 5, 2025, Julia DeLuney was sentenced to 18 years in jail for the murder of her mother. RNZ's Kate Green covered the trial which heard details of how 79-year-old Helen Gregory was brutally killed in her own home.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
Black Sheep Bonus: the story of Robert Wallath
From Black Sheep: In 1892 a masked figure in a bizarre uniform began a 15 month crime spree, robbing people at gunpoint in and around New Plymouth. When he was finally arrested and unmasked, residents were dumbfounded to discovered the perpetrator was mild-mannered Robert Wallath - the teenage son of a local farmer and carpenter.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
Case #054 - The Mysterious Suitcase & The Fraudster
A suitcase was found floating in the Waitematā Harbour in 1966. Its contents kicked off an international manhunt and one of Aotearoa's biggest fraudsters. Joseph Sheehan BEM was a detective on the case.In 1966, the captain of the Salvation Army barge was heading up the Waitematā Harbour when he spotted a mysterious suitcase floating in the water.He fished it out and discovered documents from the c
Case #053 - Crooked Cop Michael Blowers
Michael Blowers was a police officer, family man and pillar of the community. He was also stealing drugs from the police exhibit room and giving them to his mistress to sell. RNZ's Charlie Dreaver describes Blowers downfall.In 2014, former police detective Michael Blowers was sent to prison for five years on a raft of drug-related offences.For years he had been stealing drugs from the Whangarei po
Case #052 - The Unsolved Murder of Arthur Blomfield
True crime writer Scott Bainbridge takes us through the unsolved murder of pharmacist Arthur Blomfield, who was bludgeoned to death in his Auckland store, Mackay's Dispensary, in 1931.In 1931, just before closing time, pharmacist Arthur Blomfield was bludgeoned to death at the back of Mackay's dispensary on Wellesley Street in central Auckland.His killer has never been found.True crime author
Case #051 - The Trial of Alan Hall
Alan Hall spent nearly two decades in jail for the 1985 murder of Arthur Easton. In 2022 his convictions were quashed. Stuff journalist Mike White explains the flaws in the case against Hall and Geoff Hall talks about his brother's life after prison.In 1985, Arthur Easton was murdered by a bayonet wielding intruder, in his Papakura home.His two sons were also injured trying to fight off the attack
Case #050 - Conman Wayne Eaglesome
Stuff's senior crime reporter tells Jesse Mulligan about his ongoing hunt for one of Aotearoa's most prolific conmen.For two decades Wayne Eaglesome has committed hundreds of crimes across the country.He has used 40 different aliases and has been convicted of 250 offences, for both fraud and sexual crimes.Stuff senior crime reporter Sam Sherwood came across Eaglesome several years ago and has foll
Case #049 - The Trial of Pedro Cleven
In this episode we hear about one of our country's most sensational trials - that of headhunters gang member Pedro Cleven.Through the late 90s and into the early 2000s police ran operation Mexico in a strike a blow at the Headhunters gang.They nabbed Peter 'Pedro' Cleven on cannabis and methamphetamine charges and what followed as a trial like no other. Patrick Gower talks to Jesse Mulli
Case #048 - The Abandonment of Pumpkin
It was a case that shocked the world. A 3-year-old abandoned in an Australian train station, her mother murdered in New Zealand and her father on the run in America.In September 2007 a three-year-old girl was found abandoned at Melbourne's Southern Cross railway station.Initially authorities were unable to verify her identity, so they gave her the nickname "Pumpkin" after the Pumpki
Case #047 - Sophie Elliott
In January 2008, Gil Elliott received the worst news possible. His 22-year-old daughter Sophie had been stabbed to death. He talks to Jesse Mulligan about those moments, the horror that followed and his fight for change.In 2008, Sophie Elliot was stabbed to death by her former partner, Clayton Weatherston.Since her death, her family have been tirelessly campaigning for changes to prevent another c
Case #046 - The Unsolved Murder of Elsie Walker
The 1928 murder of Elsie Walker is one of New Zealand's oldest cold cases. She disappeared from the Bay of Plenty and her body was discovered by schoolboys, days later, in Auckland.Elsie Walker went missing from the Bay of Plenty and was found dead in Auckland days later.She was discovered by some young boys and was still wearing her maid's uniform. Crime author, Scott Bainbridge wrote about
Case #045 - Taito Phillip Field
In 2009, Taito Phillip Field was convicted of bribery and corruption and sentenced to six years in prison. Lockwood Smith was an opposition MP and recalls keeping the pressure on in parliament, to ensure Field was held to account.Taito Phillip Field was a minister in the Labour government when he was accused of using his position for personal gain.The Right Honourable Sir Lockwood Smith was Opposi
Case #044 - Emma Agnew
In 2007, 20-year-old Emma Agnew put a sign up in her car advertising it for sale. A man answered the ad, but he wasn't interested in buying the car. As Stuff senior reporter Martin Van Beynan describes his intentions were far more sinister.20-year-old Emma Agnew disappeared in November 2007.Emma and her entire immediate family were deaf and well-known within New Zealand's deaf community.The a
Case #043 - A Conman Gets Conned
Emma Ferris loaned $300,000 to her boyfriend only to discover he was conning her. In this episode of Crimes NZ, Emma describes the battle for her life-savings and her future.In 2018 Emma Ferris began relationship with Andrew Thomson, an entrepreneur with colourful stories about his past and future ventures.Emma loaned a large sum to the conman believing it was destined for legitimate investment. T
Case #042 - The Timaru Poisonings
In 1886 the bustling town of Timaru was stunned when society darling Thomas Hall was arrested for the attempted murder of his wife, Kitty. Author Peter Graham outlines one of the most sensational cases of 19th century New Zealand.In 1886, as he sentenced Thomas Hall to life in prison for the attempted poisoning of his wife Kitty Hall, the presiding judge said: "You have achieved in the annals
Case #041 - The Bain Family Murders
David Bain spent 13 years in prison after being found guilty of killing his family in 1994 - however he always maintained his innocence and he was acquitted in a retrial in 2009.On the 24th of June, 1994, Robin (58) and Margaret Bain (50) and three of their children, Arawa (19), Laniet (18) and Stephen (14), were found dead in their Dunedin home.Four days later, the only surviving family member -
Case #040 - Delcelia Witika
The presiding judge described the death of Delcelia Witika as one of the most disturbing cases of child abuse to come before the High Court. David Mcloughlin covered the case.Delcelia Witika's mother and stepfather were both were sentenced to 16 years in jail, for her manslaughter.A judge described this case as the most disturbing to come before the High Court.Delcelia was just two years old
Case #039 - Aramoana
In November 1990, thirteen people were shot and killed in the seaside village of Aramoana. Tim Ashton was a member of the anti-terrorism squad that was sent in to stop the gunman. Thirty-three year-old David Gray began shooting after a confrontation with one of his neighbours over a dog.By the end of his rampage, 13 people were dead and several others were injured.The police's anti-terrorism
Case #038 - The David Ross Ponzi Scheme
David Ross was jailed in 2013 for running a ponzi scheme that resulted in thousands of New Zealand investors losing millions of dollars.David Ross, the former director of the failed company Ross Asset Management, was jailed in November 2013 for 10 years and 10 months, with a minimum non-parole period of half that time.The ponzi scheme he'd been running collapsed in 2012, owing investors $115
Case #037 - Robert Gawith
In 1987, pig hunters stumbled upon the body of Robert Gawith kicking off a murder inquiry with links to the infamous Mr Asia drug syndicate.It was a case that sparked headlines like 'NZ's Bonnie and Clyde' or 'Lawless Lovers' when it was discovered that a couple with links to the Mr Asia crime syndicate were behind the murder of 23 year-old Robert Gawith.Robert Gawith was
Case #036 - Scott Guy
In the early hours of July 8, 2010, Scott Guy was gunned down at his farm gate. Police suspected his brother-in-law, but he was found not-guilty and no one else has been held accountable for the killing.Thirty-one year old Scott Guy was on his way to work, it was just a regular day, when he was murdered in his driveway.He had no known enemies and there were very few clues to point to who might hav
Case #035 - Cynthia Grierson Jackson
In 1960, police discovered the body of a man in a central Auckland apartment, but it is the disappearance of his wife, Cynthia Grierson Jackson that has baffled police for more than half a decade.Neighbours describe one night where there were loud voices coming from the apartment of Cynthia Grierson Jackson and her husband, Michael.Otherwise, there was nothing to suggest the grisly scene police wo
Case #034 - Raurimu
Six people were killed and four injured when Stephen Anderson took his father's shotgun and went on a rampage in the sleepy North Island settlement of Raurimu, in 1997. Michael Morrah interviewed Anderson and tells his story.When Stephen Anderson saw his parents and their friends eating breakfast at the family bach in Raurimu, he became convinced they were part of a conspiracy to end the world.His
Case #033 - Honora Parker
In the winter of 1954, two schoolgirls - Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme - murdered Pauline's mother on a remote walking track in Christchurch. Author Peter Graham recounts the events leading to Honora Parker's death.On June 22,1954, Juliet Hulme and Pauline Parker went for tea and a walk at Victoria Park in Christchurch's Port Hills with Pauline's mother, Honorah Parker.It was there, on
Case #032 - Ruby Knox
Barrister Simon Shamy describes the tragic murder of Ruby Knox. He represented Donella Knox who admitted killing her daughter.In May 2016, Donella Knox sedated and then smothered her 21-year-old daughter, Ruby.She was sent to jail for four years.Donella had been the sole carer for her daughter Ruby for 20 years.Ruby was severely autistic and intellectually disabled. She could not speak, was violen
Case #031 - Heidi Charles
On New Years Eve, 1976, 36-year-old Heidi Charles vanished without a trace. True crime writer Scott Bainbridge explains how this baffling case has been mixed up with other high-profile disappearances.On New Years' Eve 1976, 36-year-old Heidi Charles was dropped off in central Rotorua to do some shopping.She arranged to meet her husband, Robert, and two sons an hour later at Fenton Park. But s
Case #030 - Emily Longley
In 2011, 17 year-old Emily Longley was strangled to death by her boyfriend.
Her father, Mark Longley, recounts the battle for justice and the healing process.On the 7th May 2011, Emily Longley was found dead at her boyfriend's house in Bournemouth, England.The 17 year old New Zealand had moved to England to go to college. She had only been there for eight months.Emily's boyfriend, 21 yea
Case #029 - David McNee
David McNee was beaten to death in his own home in 2003. His killer was found guilty of manslaughter after using a provocation defence referred to as the 'gay panic' defence.In 2003, Philip Edwards went to David McNee's house to perform a sex show for $120 but ended up killing the well known interior designer.McNee's killer used a partial 'provocation defence' which was at the
Case #028 - The Waterfront Robbery
It's one of the most brazen robberies in New Zealand's history. In November 1956, Auckland mobsters made off with the equivalent today of $1 million after breaking into the Waterfront Industry Commission's offices.In 1956, Auckland mobsters might have pulled off the heist of the century, after breaking into the Waterfront Industry Commission offices and making off with the equivalent of a million
Case #027 - Margery Hopegood
The 1992 murder of English tourist, Margery Hopegood, stunned the country.
She was in New Zealand to discover her roots, but was stabbed to death in a Hamilton toilet block.Margery Hopegood was born in New Zealand but had been adopted by a English family and raised there.She had been back in New Zealand just four days when she was brutally murdered.The murder was huge news and the people of Hamilt
Case #026 - Alicia O'Reilly
On August 16, 1980, 6 year-old Alicia O'Reilly was found dead in her bed, in the room she shared with her 8-year-old sister. For years the case has gone unsolved, but police are currently following up new leads Alicia O'Reilly was found dead in her bed in her Avondale home on August 16, 1980.It appears she was killed while her eight-year-old sister slept just metres away. This episode of Cri
Case #025 - The Napier Siege
In May 2009, three Napier police officers entered Jan Molenaar's home searching for drugs. The execution of a simple search warrant turned into a three day stand-off and ended with two deaths.Jan Molenaar arrived home to find police searching his home for drugs on May 7, 2009. He was furious and got out a gun, ordering the police officers out of his home. Then he started firing.Constable Len Snee
Case #024 - The Kahui Twins
Chris and Cru Kahui were just 84 days old when they were fatally injured in their Auckland home. Their father, also Chris, was charged with murder but eventually acquitted of the crime.It was a case that shocked the nation. The deaths of newborn twin boys, Chris and Cru Kahui in 2006.The twins' father Chris was charged with their murder, but he was eventually acquitted.Marie Dyhrberg, lawyer
Case #023 - Kirsa Jensen
On September 1, 1983 Kirsa Jensen saddled up her horse for a ride along Awatoto beach, near her home in Napier and was never seen again.Kirsa Jensen's body has never been found and no one has ever been charged with her murder.The 14-year-old disappeared on September 1, 1983.Retired Detective Inspector Ian Holyoake headed the investigation into Kirsa's disappearance.Go to this episode on
Case #022 - Lorraine & Aaron Cohen
Lorraine Cohen and her son Aaron spent much of the 80's locked up in a Malaysia prison facing the death penalty.In 1984, Lorraine Cohen and her son Aaron were arrested at a Malaysian airport and charged with drug trafficking, a charge that carried a death penalty.Journalist Tim Donoghue spent much of his career covering the story and eventually wrote about book called The Tiger Who Smiled about th
Case #021 - South Canterbury Finance
It was the biggest white collar crime New Zealand had ever seen, totalling $1.5 billion dollars, and at the centre of it all was South Canterbury Finance.South Canterbury Finance went into voluntary receivership in 2010, claiming a $1.5 billion dollar government bailout.Four years later, the company director was dead and three other board members were charged with the largest fraud New Zealand had
Case #020 - The Black Widow
Philip Nisbet was found dead in his Christchurch home on May 4, 2009.
Four years later his wife was found guilty of murder.In 2013, Helen Milner was found guilty of drugging her husband in order to get the life insurance payout.Four years earlier, she had convinced police her husband killed himself.But Lee-Anne Cartier, the victim's sister, felt something was off and began her own investigati
Case #019 - Jane Furlong
The disappearance of Jane Furlong is a mystery that has gripped the nation for nearly thirty years.In 1993, 17-year-old Jane Furlong disappeared from Auckland's Karangahape Road.Nineteen years later her remains were found on a beach at Port Waikato. Her killer has never been brought to justice.Stuff journalist Kelly Dennett wrote The Short Life and Mysterious Death of Jane Furlong, a book whi
Case #014 - Christine and Amber Lundy
In 2002, Mark Lundy was found guilty of killing his wife Christine and 7-year old daughter Amber, but investigative journalist Mike White has some questions about the prosecution's case.Christine Lundy and her seven-year old daughter Amber were brutally killed in their own home in August, 2000.Two years later, Mark Lundy, Christine's husband and Amber's father, was convicted of their mur
Case #015 - Coral-Ellen Burrows
Coral-Ellen Burrows was reported missing on September 9th, 2003. She was six years old. Former detective John Gualter worked on the case, known as Operation Reef.On September 9 2003, six-year-old Featherston girl Coral Ellen Burrows was reported missing. Police were alerted when her mother went to pick her up from school, and found out that she hadn't attended class that day.Ten days later, C
Case #016 - How To Murder Your Wife
The details of the 1977 murder of Betty Benning were so bizarre, movie producer Philly De Lacey turned it into a black comedy.In 1977 on a quiet Karori street, Alf Benning brutally murdered his wife Betty.Her body parts were discovered buried beneath a freshly planted apple tree in the backyard. Alf had copies of books borrowed from the local library about getting away with murder.The killing is t
Case #017 - The Bombing of the Rainbow Warrior
The 1985 bombing of the Rainbow Warrior is described as the first act of terrorism against New Zealand. An assault which claimed the life of Greenpeace photographer Fernando Pereira.On 10 July 1985 the Greenpeace ship, the Rainbow Warrior, was sunk at an Auckland wharf.Two French agents planted two explosives on the ship while it was berthed at Marsden wharf, the second explosion killed Greenpeace
Case #018 - The Kidnapping of Baby Kahu
In 2002, an armed stranger snatched Baby Kahu from her stroller and held her for ransom for nine long days.Wellington lawyer Donna Hall was walking her dog with two nieces and eight-month-old baby Kahu, when a stranger brandishing a gun grabbed the baby and drove off.The next day the family was sent a ransom note demanding $3 million dollars.For nine terrifying days the family had no idea where Ba
Case #013 - Teresa Cormack
Six-year old Teresa Cormack went missing in 1987. Her body was found 10 days later. For 15 years her murder remained unsolved, until investigators got the breakthrough of the century. In 1987, on the 19th of June, the body of Teresa Cormack was found half buried under a tree on Whirinaki Beach, in Hawke's Bay.It took 15 years for find her killer.She left for school, but never arrived in class
Case #012 - Heavy Metal
On a Sunday afternoon in Christchurch in 1996, scrap metal dealer John Reynolds failed to return home for lunch. Later that evening, his brother found the 55-year-old lying in a pool of blood at the scrap yard.Fifty-five year old John Reynolds was discovered lying in a pool of blood at this scrap metal yard in 1996.He had been hit repeatedly around the head with a blunt instrument.More than two de
Case #011 - The Poisoned Professor
Canterbury plant scientist David Lloyd fell severely ill in suspicious circumstances in 1992. The ensuing investigation became known as the 'poisoned professor case'.When Canterbury scientist David Lloyd fell ill in 1992, suspicious immediately fell on his former lover.Dr Vicky Calder was arrested in 1994 and stood trial twice for attempted murder, or alternatively poisoning with intent. Lady Debo
Case #010 - The Swedish Backpackers Murder
In 1989, two Swedish tourists, Sven Urban Höglin and Heidi Paakkonen, went missing in the Coromandel. Mr Höglin's body was discovered by pig hunters in 1991, but Ms Paakkonen has not been seen since.David Tamihere spent 21 years in prison for the 1989 murders of Sven Urban Höglin and Heidi Paakkonen.The Swedish tourists and had gone tramping in bush near Thames in April. They were reported missing
Case #009 - Kirsty Bentley
15-year-old Canterbury teenager, Kirsty Bentley from Ashburton went missing after taking her dog for a walk on New Year's Eve in 1998 - her body was found just over two weeks later. Stuff journalists Blair Ensor and Martin van Beynen recently completed an investigative piece on the unsolved case.It's one of the most high-profile cold cases in New Zealand's history - the murder of Canterb
Case #008 - The Pamper Party Murder
In October 2016, a group of women gathered in West Auckland for a pamper party. It ended with the death of Carly Stewart. Defence lawyer, Marie Dyhrberg QC was involved in the case.In October 2016, a group of women gathered in West Auckland for what was supposed to be a fun social event - a chance to do their nails, catch up with friends, and have a few drinks.But the party took a bizarre and viol
Case #007 - The Trades Hall Bombing
It's one of the most famous unsolved mysteries in New Zealand history. In 1984, a bomb went off on the Trades Hall in Wellington killing caretaker Ernie Abbott. Former Secretary Graeme Clark remembers that day and the confusion that followed.On the 27th of March, 1984 at the Trades Hall in Wellington, caretaker Ernie Abbott bent over to pick up a suitcase left behind earlier in the day. It contain
Case #005 - Peter Plumley-Walker & the Dominatrix
The case that brought the word "bondage" to dinner tables around the nation. Renee Chignall was a teenage dominatrix who was tried three times for the murder of Peter Plumley-Walker in January 1989.Peter Plumley-Walker died during a bondage session at the Remuera home of Renee Chignall and Neville Walker in January, 1989.The couple dumped his body over the Huka Falls.Renee Chignall was a teenage d
Case #006 - The Mr Asia Drug Ring
Investigative journalist and presenter David Lomas began covering the Mr Asia drug ring case when he was a crime reporter at the Dominion newspaper in Wellington in 1978. He has followed the story ever since.The Mr Asia drug ring imported large quantities of drugs into New Zealand and Australia through the 70s.The drug ring, one of the largest New Zealand has ever seen, was led by Marty Johnstone,
Case #004 - The Trial of David Dougherty
David Dougherty was convicted for the rape and abduction of an 11 year old girl in 1993. But he wasn't guilty of the crime. Donna Chisholm was the journalist at the centre of the campaign to free him and have him compensated.In 1993, David Dougherty was convicted of abducting and raping an 11-year-old girl in Auckland.He spent more than three years in prison before being acquitted at a retrial in
Case #003 - The Disappearance of Deane Fuller-Sandys
Deane Fuller-Sandys went missing on 21 August, 1989 after setting off to go fishing at the rough West Auckland beach Whatipu and for nearly a decade he was presumed drowned.Deane Fuller-Sandys went missing on 21 August,1989 after setting off to go fishing at the rough West Auckland beach Whatipu and for nearly a decade he was presumed drowned.In February 1997, police began investigating tips which
Case #002 - Teina Pora's Wrongful Conviction
Teina Pora was wrongly imprisoned for 20 years for the rape and murder of Susan Burdett, brutally attacked in her Papatoetoe home in March 1992. Investigative journalist Eugene Bingham joins Jesse to us through the case.On Monday 23 March, 1992, Susan Burdett was raped and beaten to death with a softball bat.What followed would become one of this country's most prominent miscarriages of justi
Case #001 - Olivia Hope and Ben Smart
Olivia Hope and Ben Smart disappeared in the Marlborough Sounds in the early hours of New Year's Day in 1998. Investigative journalist and author, Mike White, has covered this case through all its twists and turns over two decades.Ben Smart and Olivia Hope were last seen about 4am on January 1 1998 when they were dropped off to a yacht by a water taxi.Ben and Olivia were planning to sleep on the c
