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Archived Press Releases 2007 4th August 2007

AUSSIES DON’T WANT KIWI PAEDOPHILE

(4th August 2007)

The Sensible Sentencing Trust say the New Zealand-born paedophile recently sent home from Australia and now thought to be in the Wellington area is proof yet again that a "Sex Offender" register should be publicly available.

The Trust was threatened with legal action recently by lawyers acting for sex offenders who were named on the Sensible Sentencing Trust sex offenders web site.

Since that publicity the Trust has been inundated with calls from the public offering information on thousands more offenders.

Trust spokesman Garth McVicar said the latest case brought to their attention was that of Brent Joseph Groves, a New Zealander who had committed numerous offences while living in Australia, and had a soundproof dungeon in the back garden of his Queensland home.

Groves was blocked from entering Australia as he tried to return from a holiday in April, he is now thought to be living in Wellington.

McVicar says this is just needlessly exposing innocent children to danger, and he is calling for the Government to have a publicly available register to protect the community from offenders like Groves.

"I can’t understand why we have laws that give these criminals more rights than the law abiding public, surely our children should be able to go about their daily lives without having to worry about creeps like this stalking them."

The Sensible Sentencing Trust is taking a Television crew to Arizona and Los Angles next week to look at alternative prison systems and McVicar said they would be also be having a look at the way sex offenders are treated.

"Arizona runs a publicly available register that includes names and addresses of convicted sex offenders maintained and updated by the State. They believe the public deserve to be protected from these criminals by telling everyone where they live."

"Here in New Zealand our Government are prepared to risk innocent children by placing convicted sex offenders secretly amongst an unsuspecting community."

Regards,

Garth McVicar
National Spokesperson,
Sensible Sentencing Trust.