Two a penny

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Auckland police investigating a suspicious
death believe they know how the man died, but lack enough evidence
for an arrest after being stonewalled by witnesses.

Damien Loder Allen, 33, the previous month died from head injuries which were not accidental.

Police believe the house where his body was found on September 24 in the suburb of Hillsborough had been cleaned and his body had been moved.

Mr Allen had head injuries and police were still waiting on toxicology results.

Several possible witnesses were refusing to co-operate.

He would not say how Mr Allen got his injuries, or if they had found a weapon.

Detective Inspector Scott Beard said he believed witnesses may be protecting someone involved in the death.

Others in Mr Allen’s house made 111 calls the night he died.

It was not a party but people were socialising and drinking.

Four people were in the house when police arrived and others had visited the house on the night.

He said information was still flowing in but police still wanted to hear from anyone who knew what may have happened or knew the people at the house. .

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Anyone with information should call the confidential Crimestoppers line on 0800 555 111

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LATEST:
Threats to pull the plug on an NZ Bus contract if the company refuses to end its lockout of 900 bus drivers are unrealistic, the Auckland Regional Transport Authority (Arta) says.

NZ Bus, which operates most bus services in Auckland, began the lockout on Thursday after drivers said they would work strictly to the rulebook in support of their wage claim.The company and four unions representing bus drivers are still in facilitation, but there has been little progress reported.No NZ Bus services have run since the n and the disruption became greater today on the first day of the fourth school term.”Like any commercial contract, NZ Bus contracts can be terminated for non-performance,” Mr Lee said.Auckland Regional Council chairman Mike Lee today said the council would begin procedures to end its contract with NZ Bus in coming days if the lockout did not end. .”If this dispute is not settled, I will be calling on Arta to start the process of terminating the existing contracts and finding someone else who will deliver the services that Auckland expects and pays for.”We would need to find an operator that could come up with that level of service in 180 days - that’s fairly impossible.”If we terminated New Zealand Bus completely then we’d leave a 700-bus gap overnight, and we couldn’t do that to the public,” Ms Hunter told Radio New Zealand.”But at this point we’re not examining at that process,” she said.”Ms Hunter said she hoped there would be a resolution in the near future, but if there was no progress within the next few days the authority would look at intervening.”NZ Bus spokeswoman Megan McSweeney said Mr Lee’s comments were “not helpful”.”In terms of the services that we are running, with alternative operators including our train operators, we are actually managing to get people into work on time.

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LATEST:
Deputy Prime Minister Bill English has announced he will not receive any more taxpayer-funding housing allowances.

The finance minister this afternoon confirmed actions he had taken with the aim of putting the “unnecessary distraction” of the row over his housing expenses behind him.

His announcement comes ahead of an informal meeting scheduled with the Auditor-General’s office this evening to discuss an investigation into his housing allowances claim.

* Had not received any housing allowance payments since July 28.

Mr English said he:

* Would no longer receive a housing allowance.

* Had received a legal opinion from Stephen Kos, QC, that changes made to his family trust arrangements did not affect his eligibility for the housing allowance.

* Had repaid all housing allowance payments received since last November’s election to Ministerial Services.

“What I’m announcing today reflects a set of personal decisions I have made about my own situation,” Mr English said.

“At all times my decisions have been driven by my desire to keep my family together and provide them with as much stability as possible.

“It is in no way setting a precedent for others although I make the point here that I believe Parliament does have to think how it can accommodate the families of long-term politicians.”

A TV One poll showed that voters felt the issue was denting Mr English’s credibility. It’s now clear that the system has struggled to deal with my circumstances.

The Deputy Prime Minister considers the Southland town of Dipton, in his electorate, to be his primary residence under parliamentary rules, but his family has lived in, and owned, a house in Wellington for years.

Asked if the issue had damaged his credibility, 62 percent said yes and 27 percent no; asked if Mr English has acted with integrity, 54 percent said no and 30 percent yes.

He came under fire when it was revealed he was now claiming a much higher allowance to stay in the Wellington house than when he lived there as an opposition MP.

He came under fire when it was revealed he was now claiming a much higher allowance to stay in the Wellington house than when he lived there as an opposition MP.

Today, a spokesman for Mr English said the Auditor-General’s office wrote to the minister after receiving the complaint.

Auditor-General Lyn Provost has asked for more information before deciding whether to investigate a complaint by Progressive Party leader Jim Anderton into the matter.

He will meet with a team from the office tonight for informal talks which will not form part of the inquiry, the spokesman said.

They said “feel free” to get in touch and Mr English has done that. .

Mr English will be informed about what the Auditor-General’s office is doing

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An energy drinks company has denied organising a publicity stunt that resulted in three New Zealand soldiers being sent home in disgrace from Afghanistan.

They were photographed posing with a large bomb carrying an advert for Demon energy drinks and were sent home for breaching operational security.

One photo showed a Demon energy drink sticker with the slogan “no limits, no laws” attached to the bomb suspended from a plane, with the soldiers standing around it.

The men took the photos and sent them to the drink company.

A decision was made to send the soldiers home immediately after the incident, which went against clear guidance given to all military personnel on operations, Joint Forces commander Air Vice Marshal Peter Stockwell said yesterday.

Another showed a handwritten message, “dear Taliban enjoy this demon”, on the side of the bomb. .

Demon Drinks company said today that the soldiers were not involved in any kind of commercial sponsorship agreement.”

The soldiers were not directly asked to take part in any kind of promotion.

“Demon Drinks has no understanding of army procedures, so did not know this would cause an issue.

“Often we ask for photos of people drinking the product in return.

The company said it donated products and did sampling all over the country every day.”

The company regretted what had happened to the soldiers, and had expressed that to them personally several weeks ago. In no way was this a publicity stunt.

“Demon Drinks was acting in good faith to help NZ troops and we wanted to show our support for them.

“If we had realised that this was going to be the outcome we would never have provided free drinks.”

AVM Stockwell said two of the soldiers had been found to have contravened the Armed Forces Discipline Act and were formally reprimanded. It is very unfortunate the way this has panned out for the soldiers and we will do everything we can to help these soldiers if their careers are in jeopardy.

Green Party MP Keith Locke, who previously criticised the soldiers’ actions, said sending them home was an appropriate punishment.

“Irrespective of the investigation into whether the acts contravened military law, the NZDF sets and expects very high levels of professionalism and behaviour from its people - this is especially the case in an operational theatre where the protection of information is vital to the overall security of New Zealand interests and activities,” he said.

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Thousands of Auckland bus commuters may once more face disruptions from industrial disputes.

Bus drivers and cleaners have “over whelmingly rejected” a pay offer from NZ Bus at a stop work today, said a union spokesperson.

The 900 bus drivers and cleaners in the Auckland Combined Union had called for a work to rule.

On Wednesday threatened industrial action which was estimated to affect up to 80,000 Auckland commuters was averted after the union and NZ Bus reached a compromise pay offer.

The drivers were seeking an increase of 6. In response the company said it would lock them out.05, only $1.8 percent this year, taking the starting wage from $14. .05 more than the minimum wage, to $15 an hour, the union said.75 after nine months of service.30 after three months employment before peaking at $16.9 percent increase over three years which he said was exceptionally fair in this economy.

NZ Bus operations manager Zane Fulljames said they had offered a 9.

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Mr Fulljames said the lockout had been put in place as the company could not operate safely or reliably if the workers were working to rule

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A Christchurch City Council proposal to buy the ‘house of horrors’ where two bodies were found last Friday has been welcomed by the owner of the adjoining house, who says the offer has ‘lifted a huge weight’ off him.

The Christchurch house may be bought by the city council because no-one would want to live there, Mayor Bob Parker says.

“Nobody can go back and live there or, in the short term, would even want to consider being in that place,” he said.

In an announcement that surprised some councillors, Parker said that after watching the removal of one of the bodies on TV on Monday night, he believed the “only resolution” was for the council to buy the Aranui house and the adjoining home on the property.

Jason Hall said today Mr Parker’s proposal was a huge weight off his mind.

The Hall family, who lived in the other side of the semi-detached house have stayed in alternate accommodation, paid for by police, since the discovery of the bodies and have said they would never return to their home. .

“It felt like someone had lifted a car off of my back, the relief.” he told Radio New Zealand. .”

Parker said there was a “significant danger” the building would be attacked.

“There’s still all the horror of what’s actually happened there and that’s not gonna go away in a hurry at all.

One was an occupant of the house and the other is believed to be that of a neighbour, Tisha Lowry, who disappeared a year ago.

The bodies of two women were found buried under the floor of the two-storey Wainoni Rd home last Friday.

Police say he is likely to face a second murder charge when he reappears in the Christchurch District Court on Friday.

A 33-year-old man, who is listed with his wife as the home’s owners, has been charged with his wife’s murder.

“We need to cross that bridge when we get to it.

Parker was not aware the accused man co-owned the property and could not say whether that would stop a possible purchase.

“If it works out and we have a willing seller, then I think the council will be a willing buyer. The property itself is currently the scene of an investigation and we don’t know how long that will last,” he said.

“For the community to be able to climb back up from the shock of this event, there has to be a role for them in creating a positive outcome on that site,” he said.”

The community would decide the future of the site, Parker said, with options including a memorial park or a community support facility. For the city as a whole, we need to move on.

“There are lots of good people who are deeply hurt in the area at the moment and there needs to be a way that we can heal this for the sake of that community.

“We don’t want someone resolving this by themselves and potentially destroying the house in some way because that puts others in the community at risk.

“We don’t want someone resolving this by themselves and potentially destroying the house in some way because that puts others in the community at risk. .

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AFP - The race to lead the UN’s culture and education agency UNESCO kicks off Monday amid controversy over charges that anti-Israel comments from Egypt’s Faruq Hosni make him unfit for the top job.

Representatives from 58 nations who make up UNESCO’s executive council begin meeting in Paris on Monday and a first round of voting to elect a successor to Japan’s Koichiro Matsuura is set for September 17.

Egypt’s culture minister for the past 22 years, Hosni is lobbying to cement his status as the frontrunner and become the next director general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

Wiesel, Bernard-Henri Levy and Claude Lanzmann wrote in Le Monde newspaper that the international community must spare itself from the shame of appointing Faruq Hosni to the post of UNESCO director general.

In all nine candidates are running for the post, but Hosni’s leading bid ran into trouble in May when Auschwitz survivor and Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel joined two French intellectuals to oppose his candidacy.

Hosni has since voiced regret for the comments and sought to explain that they were uttered in the context of an exchange in parliament with hardliners from the Muslim Brotherhood.

The clamour surrounds comments Hosni made in May 2008, vowing to burn Israeli books himself if he found any in Egyptian libraries. .

A former Austrian foreign minister, Ferrero-Waldner has acknowledged that she does not have the full backing of European governments, some of which support rival bids by Lithuania’s UNESCO ambassador Ina Marciulionyte and Bulgarian ambassador to France Irina Bokova.

Hosni’s main rival for the post is European Commissioner for External Relations, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, but the choice of Egypt’s candidate has won much support in Europe as an attempt to reach out to the Muslim world.

In an interview in Cairo, Hosni sought to fend off the accusations leveled against him and said his candidacy was based on a basic philosophy which is reconciliation between peoples.

France must remain neutral on the issue as it is the host country for UNESCO but officials have said privately that Paris favours Hosni for the job.

A recent article in the prestigious American Foreign Policy magazine described Hosni’s bid as scandalous and accused him of echoing the rampant Judeophobia of Egyptian intellectual circles.

As head of UNESCO, he would encourage a rapprochement in the whole region, without exception, Hosni said.

Amid the brouhaha, the United States has refused to publicly back a contender, but a State Department spokesman took pains to point out that the right candidate must have a demonstrated commitment to UNESCO’s core principles.

Amid the brouhaha, the United States has refused to publicly back a contender, but a State Department spokesman took pains to point out that the right candidate must have a demonstrated commitment to UNESCO’s core principles.

UNESCO

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An events management company is set to be prosecuted for allegedly supplying alcohol to under-age drinkers at school after-ball functions.

Auckland police Sergeant Jason Loye said a prosecution was the last resort in the case.

Police had tried to work with the company, which he declined to name because the matter had not yet reached the courts, but the director would not co-operate. .

“We’ve told him how to do it legally, but he doesn’t want to do it that way,” Mr Loye told the Herald on Sunday.

After-ball functions are a perennial issue and this month Auckland’s Rangitoto College made headlines after it reacted to an unsanctioned after-ball party by banning next year’s balls.”

Mr Loye said the only people who could supply alcohol to minors were their parents or legal guardians.

Last month, parents at Auckland Grammar School revealed that the after-ball function had featured cage dancers.

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An air traffic controller, who was making ‘inappropriate conversations’ on the phone at the time of a mid-air collision over New York’s Hudson River, which killed nine people including a Kiwi pilot, is to be disciplined.

The controller’s supervisor, who was not in the building at the time as required, will also be displined, the Federal Aviation Administration says.

The FAA says it has placedboth employees on administrative leave in connection with last week’s deadly mid-air collisionbetween a small plane and a helicopter piloted by New Zealander Jeremy Clarke, in which eight other people also died.

The FAA says the controller was involved in “apparently inappropriate conversations” on the telephone at the time of the accident.

The FAA said on Thursday night it has begun disciplinary proceedings against the air-traffic controller who was handling the small planeand against a supervisor on duty at the time.

However, the FAA says that the employees’ actions don’t appear to have contributed to the accident itself. .

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It was a reunion of reunions.

Twelve Apollo astronauts reminisced, traded stories and poked fun at each other Friday night as the 40th anniversary of the first moon landing and moonwalk approached.

The crowd of hundreds at the National Museum of the United States Air Force erupted in cheers when a video chronicling the space program replayed Armstrong’s famous first words after stepping on the moon July 20, 1969: “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.

The astronauts, including first moonmen Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, attended the ceremony in which the National Aviation Hall of Fame presented the Apollo crews with the “Spirit of Flight” award for their courage and dedication. “Any time you go to a place where everything you see is different than anything you’ve ever seen before in your life, it’s unique and it’s memorable.”

“It was spectacular,” Armstrong recalled of gazing at the moon’s surface as he took those first steps.”

However, Armstrong said he and Aldrin had little time to savor the experience. And that certainly was.

Armstrong said he had been a backup on Apollo 8 and that when he wasn’t needed was asked if he wanted to be on the third mission down the line — what turned out to be the fateful Apollo 11 mission.

“We didn’t rest hardly five seconds when we got a message from Mission Control, saying get on with the next item,” Armstrong said.

“We knew we had a chance at landing, but it was by no means certain,” he said. He said it was difficult to predict the exact mission of succeeding flights.

Astronaut Eugene Cernan, the last man to walk on the moon, also flew in the flight preceding Armstrong’s.

As they sat together on the stage, the astronauts joked and bantered with each other.

“Everyone knew Neil could land on the moon, but we didn’t have a lot of confidence Neil could find it,” Cernan quipped. He joked that his job was to paint a white line to the moon that Apollo 11 could follow.

But the first lunar landing was a serious matter for the astronauts and those in mission control.

“I’ve been listening to that for 40 years, and this is not the time to change my position,” Armstrong shot back, drawing laughs from the crowd.

“I can’t say it was panic, but it was a lot of attention to detail in mission control,” said Charles Duke, who was at mission control at the time. When the designated landing zone proved to be too rocky, Armstrong had to burn fuel from a diminishing supply to find a suitable place to touch down.” When there were only 30 seconds of fuel left, “it got dead silent. .”