Two a penny

.

A jealous lover was today jailed for a claw hammer attack on a man who he believed to be his ex-girlfriend’s new partner.

Trevor William Grindrod, 34, was sentenced at the High Court in Wellington to seven years and nine months imprisonment.

The man barricaded himself in the bedroom and told Grindrod he had called the police, “but you were not to be denied,” attacking him with the claw hammer, Justice Gendall said.

Justice Warwick Gendall said that six weeks after Grindrod split with his girlfriend, he visited her house uninvited and saw her with a workmate, “you thought, in a mildly amorous situation”.

“You were fortunate you did not kill the complainant.

“This was an unprovoked, prolonged, gratuitous attack with a lethal weapon,” Justice Gendall said.

He smashed his way into the property through a window, broke through the bedroom door and began hitting the man in the head and body with the hammer, adding punches and kicks.”

Crown prosecutor Kate Feltham said Grindrod walked from Wainuiomata to the workmate’s Lower Hutt house, “picking up” the hammer on the way.

Grindrod told police he was trying to kill the man and was initially charged with attempted murder.

The attack spilled into the bathroom where Grindrod ripped a vanity from the wall and attempted to beat his victim with it.

His victim suffered numerous injuries including a broken nose, but after months of physiotherapy escaped long term physical damage.

This was later reduced to injuring with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

“You are a violent man with a low anger threshold and when slighted by others, or you think you are, you attack.

Justice Gendall noted Grindrod had 20 previous convictions, four of which were for assault and included two attacks on children between late 2007 and early 2008.”

A starting point of 10 1/2 years jail was given, but Grindrod was given a “generous discount” of one-third for his early guilty pleas.”

He said Grindrod had attended an anger management course, “but it appears to have had little effect.

Grindrod was also sentenced to five years for aggravated burglary and two years for grievous damage, to be served concurrently, and ordered to pay $3269 in reparation for property damage on his release. A further nine months was added in light of his previous convictions.

.

Justice Gendall said Grindrod was fortunate the crown had not sought a minimum jail period

.

Waikato police have arrested eight people and recovered over 100 cannabis plants and almost 30 weapons following an eight-month drug operation.

Detective Sergeant Steve Hudson of Te Kuiti police said a 47-year-old Putaruru man and his 42-year-old partner were arrested after police searched their property and will appear in Tokoroa District Court on drugs charges today. A small amount of methamphetamine was also found.

“During the search officers discovered an indoor cannabis-growing operation and recovered 105 cloned plants of varying maturity. The male owner of the property holds a firearms licence and his suitability in terms of retaining his licence will be a focus of follow-up inquiries. .

Six Otorohanga residents were also arrested, including three members of one family who face charges of selling cannabis, possessing cannabis for sale and offering to sell cannabis.”

Three pistols and several rifles and shotguns were among the weapons seized, he said.

Two Otorohanga women also face drugs charges, one for possession of cannabis for supply and the other for possession of cannabis for supply as well as selling cannabis and offering to sell cannabis.

Another man faces charges for illegal possession of ammunition and utensils for the use of methamphetamine and cannabis, Mr Hudson said.

Mr Hudson said it was concerning that they had again found people associated with drugs who also had firearms.

.

A Treasury official’s lost notebook, which revealed the Government was thinking about merging intelligence agencies, could also contain secrets concerning the Corrections Department and the police, Prime Minister John Key said today.

A review of the way the Security Intelligence Service, the External Assessments Bureau and the Government Communications Security Bureau worked was revealed in a notebook found by a Radio New Zealand reporter.

Mr Key said the loss was a “less than ideal situation”, but it was a fact of life that people made mistakes.

Mr Key said he understood the Treasury official also covered Corrections and the police, so there could have been information on those areas in the notebook as well.

“While we regret it, I wouldn’t want to see the person lose their job as a result of the incident,” he said.

“It is very early days.

He confirmed former foreign affairs secretary Simon Murdoch had been asked to review the services. I just simply asked them to look at that as part of the value for money exercise and the future requirements and capabilities of those services.”

The GCSB is involved in international electronic surveillance and Mr Key said any concerns that surveillance might be turned more on New Zealanders would be addressed if a merger was seriously considered.

“I wouldn’t read anything into it because we are a long way away from seriously contemplating a merger, but I thought it was a good idea for Simon Murdoch to conduct a review and he is doing that.

“They were comfortable they could cope with that.

The SIS and the GCSB both had their budgets cut by about 5 percent in the last budget, he said. . . I drove the decision to have the look (at how they operate) because there is quite a bit of crossover. I drove the decision to have the look (at how they operate) because there is quite a bit of crossover.

“To link up the SIS with the GCSB would risk intelligence services coming more under the control of the American intelligence services which is certainly the case with the GCSB.

“One of the problems is the GCSB’s main operation at Waihopai (in Marlborough) is essentially part of the Americans’ National Security Agency,” Mr Locke said. .”

He did not believe a merger was likely because internationally similar agencies were kept separate.

.

The Government is planning a stocktake of valuable minerals in the conservation estate but it isn’t going to dig up pristine landscape, Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee says.

Conservation land is protected by Schedule Four of the Crown Minerals Act and Mr Brownlee said he wasn’t considering changing the legislation.”What we’re examining at is the type of land that needs to be in Schedule Four,” he told reporters today.”Mr Brownlee mentioned the stocktake at a mining conference in Queenstown yesterday.”All we’re saying is there may be some places where the conservation values of the land are significantly less than the high standard put on Schedule Four.The estimated value of untapped minerals in New Zealand has been put at about $140 billion and around 70 percent of that involves conservation land.He said today there seemed to be “a degree of panic” about it which was not warranted.”New Zealand has some of the most pristine landscape in the world.”What we’re saying is where there are new lands added to that we need to balance both aspects of economic and conservation values. It is recognised in Schedule Four of the Crown Minerals Act as being impenetrable,” Mr Brownlee said. This is a stocktake, which is perfectly reasonable. .”What New Zealanders need to know is that New Zealand is similarly endowed,” he said.”He said the previous government spent nine years explaining the economic gap between Australia and New Zealand was as a result of Australia’s mineral wealth.”It’s going to be a very public process.”It’s going to be a very public process

.

While parents know that raising children is a costly business, they may be surprised to find out that new estimates put the bill at $250,000 per child. . It does not count stay-at-home parents’ loss of income or childcare costs, the Herald on Sunday reported.

The $250,000 figure covers only expenses for “average” parents raising a child to the age of 18.

The costs were determined by comparing two adult households with the same estimated standard of living – one with children and the other without.

Revenue Minister Peter Dunne said it was the first time such figures had been calculated, and he described the findings as “stark”.

They also found costs for second and subsequent children could be reduced by the use of hand-me-downs.

The authors concluded that parents on a high income would spend almost three times as much on a single child as those on a low wage. But the figures covered only basic expenses, such as food, clothes and vital equipment.

Not surprisingly, children aged 12 and under cost less than teens.

Mr Dunne said a discussion document about possible changes to the 20-year-old system would be released in a few weeks for public consultation.

A shake-up of the child support scheme could affect more than 250,000 parents.

The present system is based on an overseas formula where payments are calculated on a percentage of the liable parent’s income.

He hoped to take a firm proposal to the Cabinet early next year.

–

.

The review could look at ways of reflecting the income of a parent’s new partner

.

A man was crushed to death in an elevator shaft at the Fonterra plant in Edendale, Southland, this morning.

An ambulance communications spokesman said it received a report at 11.08am of a worker gone missing in an elevator shaft.

A Fonterra spokeswoman said the man was a contractor working on installing the plant’s ED4 drier, as part of a $212 million expansion due to be commissioned in the next two weeks.

The man was found dead by ambulance services, from a “crushing injury,” the spokesman said.

The Labour Department has confirmed it is investigating the fatal accident.

“Our thoughts are with the contractors family, colleagues and friends at this terrible time,” the spokeswoman said. . Theodorus Rangihu Blake, 52, of New Plymouth, was crushed to death at the company’s Hawera, Taranaki, plant in January.

It it the second incident this year where a Fonterra employee died while at work.

-By MICHAEL FORBES and DEBBIE JAMIESON,

.

There are no parliamentary rules in place preventing convicted former MP Taito Phillip Field from claiming thousands of dollars worth of travel entitlements.

Field was found guilty this week at the High Court in Auckland of 11 charges of bribery and corruption as an MP and 15 charges of wilfully trying to obstruct or pervert the course of justice.

The convictions relate to him accepting work on his homes from Thai tradesman in return for immigration assistance, and his attempts to derail investigations.

Speaker Lockwood Smith admitted there appeared to be no rules suggesting former MPs convicted of criminal offences were exempt from general privileges, The New Zealand Herald reported.

Having entered Parliament in 1993, Field is still entitled to claim for up to 12 free domestic return air fares a year, along with a 90 percent discount on international travel as long as it does not exceed the cost of a return business-class flight to London on Air New Zealand – about $10,000.

Prime Minister John Key, who is in Cairns at a Pacific Islands Forum meeting, said morally the entitlements – which include perks for Field’s wife – were inappropriate.

But he said, under the circumstances, he was “willing to explore how provision could be made to address the situation”.

Labour’s chief whip Darren Hughes told Radio New Zealand this morning Field’s case was a serious one, and MPs in such a position should not be able to claim future entitlements.

“Certainly he is eligible under the criteria that existed for those MPs, but he’s been found guilty by a jury on these charges, which are serious and relate to his work as an MP.

“I don’t think they should, and I don’t think many people listening would think they should either,” he said…

.”

Mr Hughes said he would support any procedural rule changes which would make those entitlements ineligible under circumstances such as Field’s

.

A poll putting Manukau Mayor Len Brown ahead of Auckland City Mayor John Banks in the race to be the super city’s first mayor is part of internal Labour Party plotting, Banks says.

He said the poll itself was “shonky” and did not match his own polling.

Mr Banks told UMR were Labour pollsters and their operation was about getting Brown into the candidacy ahead of Auckland Regional Council chairman Mike Lee. UMR Research surveyed 482 Aucklanders to show Brown had 35 percent support to Banks’ 34 percent. He expects 20 to 30 contenders.

The poll was too small, it was conducted with a two week gap and it provided for only two contenders, Banks said. .

“I have no doubt the internal machinations of the Labour Party apparatus supports Len Brown well ahead of Mike Lee.

“This is about getting Len Brown into position as the Labour Party candidate.

“There is quite a lot of infighting,” Mr Banks said. He was surprised though that despite the poll and all the talk, he was still the only declared candidate.”

Banks objected to central government politics becoming involved in the mayoral race.”

Banks told he was rather surprised to find himself topping the poll.

“I am the only candidate who has put up his hand and said this is a job I really really want.

“I hadn’t put myself out there,” he said. But he had not declared for the job, and would not say if he was even considering it.

– ,

.

LATEST:
Lock Jason Eaton and wing Hosea Gear have been handed international recalls as Graham Henry today unveiled his 30-strong All Blacks squad for the Tri-Nations.

The selection of Eaton and Gear, who both toured with the All Balcks at the end of last year, and the return from injury of experienced performers Richie McCaw, Rodney So’oialo and Sitiveni Sivivatu are the features of the squad named this morning by Henry and his assistant coaches Wayne Smith and Steve Hansen.

Dropped from the Iveco Series squad is exciting young Counties Manukau wing Lelia Masaga, who could claim to be hard done by after being given only a fleeting chance to shine, and Waikato loose forward Liam Messam who seems to have paid the price for a shoddy performance in Dunedin against France.

Toeava has been named in the squad but Henry confirmed he will miss the first three tests of the Tri-Nations with a stress fracture in his foot.

The squad has a 17-13 forwards-backs split, but it continues to be dogged by injury with utility back Isaia Toeva the latest to join the list of walking wounded.

The return of All Blacks captain McCaw will be a massive boost, with the skipper now fully recovered from the knee injury that kept him out of the Iveco Series. Five-eighth Stephen Donald is also carrying a hamstring strain that may put his participation in the July 18 competition opener against the Wallabies in doubt. .

Both last played for the All Blacks on the 2008 Grand Slam tour, with the pair returning to New Zealand yesterday after helping the Junior All Blacks to victory in the recent IRB Pacific Nations Cup in the Pacific Islands.

The big movers have been 26-year-old Hurricanes and Taranaki lock Eaton and 25-year-old Hurricanes and Wellington winger Gear who have both been whistled up out of the Junior All Blacks. They will then reassemble in Auckland next Sunday to start preparations for the competition opener.

The All Blacks squad will get together in Wellington for a two-day camp next week (Wednesday and Thursday) with four players added as cover.

Players not considered for selection due to injury include lock Ali Williams (Achilles), wing Rudi Wulf (shoulder), flanker Adam Thomson (hand), centre Richard Kahui (shoulder), lock Anthony Boric (toe), halfback Andy Ellis (ribs), hooker Corey Flynn (forearm), flanker Scott Waldrom (back) and first-five eighths Daniel Carter (Achilles).

They are: Hurricanes and Wellington utility back Tamati Ellison, Crusaders and Canterbury first five-eighths Stephen Brett and 2008 All Blacks Ben Franks and Anthony Tuitavake, who were all members of the victorious Junior All Blacks squad.

.

A Yemeni Airbus A310 jet carrying 153 people crashed into rough seas as it came into land in the Comoros Islands on Tuesday but rescuers plucked a child survivor from the water, officials said.

There were 142 passengers and a crew of 11 Yemenis on board when the Airbus A310, which had set off from the Yemeni capital of San’a, went down shortly before landing in Moroni, on the main island of Grand Comore, Yemeni civil aviation deputy chief Mohammed Abdul Qader said.

It was the second time in less than a month that an Airbus has crashed into the ocean.

Bodies and wreckage from the Yemenia airline flight were spotted in the Indian Ocean near the capital, Moroni, aviation officials said. This time French authorities said the Yemeni carrier had been under surveillance and that problems had been reported with the jet.

The child was being taken to land where an ambulance waited to take the child to hospital.

But a child among the 142 passengers and 11 crew on Flight IY 626 was rescued alive, a surgeon at the main Moroni hospital said.Most of the passengers were from Comoros, returning from Paris. France said 66 on board were French nationals. Those on board included families with children and there were at least three babies on the flight, he added. She said that three bodies have also been retrieved, along with debris from the plane, but that no other survivors have been recovered so far.Comoros immigrations officer, Rachida Abdullah, told The Associated Press that a child was rescued from the sea. He said it was too early to speculate on the reasons for the crash, adding that the flight data recorder hadn’t been found.Abdul Qader, the Yemeni official, said the child was 5 years old.”The weather was very bad .”The weather was very bad . the wind was very strong,” he said, adding the windy conditions hampered rescue efforts..Gen. Abdul Qader said wind speed was 40 miles per hour (61 kilometers per hour) as the plane was landing.2 miles) north from the Comoran coast and 18 nautical miles (21 miles) from the Moroni airport. Bruno de Bourdoncle de Saint-Salvy, the senior commander for French forces in the southern Indian Ocean, said the Airbus 310 crashed in deep waters about 8 nautical miles (9.m.And on the Indian Ocean island of Ile de la Reunion, an official statement from the French prefecture said the crash occurred at 02:50 GMT Tuesday (10:50 p.French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said French aviation and naval support was heading to help in search operations at the Comoros government’s request. EDT Monday).Kouchner expressed “sincere condolences” and said the French Embassy in Moroni was “fully mobilized” to help families.Kouchner expressed “sincere condolences” and said the French Embassy in Moroni was “fully mobilized” to help families. The French junior minister for cooperation, Alain Joyandet, is heading Tuesday to Moroni, the statement said.The Comoros is an archipelago of three main islands situated about 2,900 kilometers south of Yemen, between Africa’s southeastern coast and Madagascar.Christophe Prazuck, French military spokesperson, says that patrol boat, the Rieuse and fregate Nivose, a reconnaissance ship, were being sent to crash site as well as Transall, a military transport plane. The French were sending divers as well as medical personnel on the plane, he said.In Paris, a crisis cell was set up at Charles de Gaulle airport. Most of the passengers on board were from the French city of Marseille, which has a large Comoros community.Another crisis cell has been established in Marseille, according to Stephane Salord, the consul general of the Comoros in the Provence-Alps-Cote d’Azur region of France.”There is considerable dismay,” Salord said. “These are families that, each year on the eve of summer, leave Marseille and the region to rejoin their families in the Comoros and spend their holidays.”In France, this week is the start of annual summer school vacations.An Airbus statement said the plane that crashed went into service 19 years ago, in 1990, and had accumulated 51,900 flight hours. It has been operated by Yemenia (Yemen Airways) since 1999.Airbus identifies the plane’s serial number as 535, and said it was sending a team of specialists to the Comoros. . There are 214 A310s in service worldwide with 41 operators.France’s transport minister Dominique Bussereau said French aviation inspectors found a “number of faults” during a 2007 inspection of the plane. He told France’s i-Tele television that the Airbus A310 was inspected by France’s civil aviation agency DGAC and “they noticed a certain number of faults.”On May 31, an Airbus A330 operated by Air France ran into thunderstorms after leaving Brazil and crashed into the Atlantic. Fifty-one bodies were recovered from that flight, which was carrying 228 people.