SPCS

SOCIETY FOR PROMOTION OF COMMUNITY STANDARDS INC.

No parole for former school principal with “deviant sexual preferences”

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A former school principal jailed for sexually abusing students has had his first parole bid declined, despite assurances he had a job lined up.

Elvis Dobson Shepherd, 52, was found guilty on two counts of sexual violation by oral sexual connection and two counts of indecent assault while he was teaching and living at Hato Petera College, a Maori Catholic boarding school on Auckland’s North Shore, in the early 1990s.

At the time of his sentencing in 2010 to eight years and four months’ jail time, he was principal of Feilding’s Hato Paora College.

Shepherd was first seen for parole in May, but the hearing was carried over until this month. The Parole Board declined his parole in their decision issued yesterday.

A psychological assessment report put Shepherd’s overall risk at medium low, with references made to a lack of capacity for relationship stability and deviant sexual preferences.

Proposals from Shepherd’s whanau group for his release included a ready-made job, the board said.

”We are told there is employment available to Mr Shepherd… as a consultant providing education resources. [The employers] are aware that there could not be any direct contact with children and that the employment would have to be related solely to administration and consultation.”

Other proposals included the possibility of electronic monitoring and an understanding Shepherd not enter ”any school, playground, park/reserve or place where children are likely to congregate unless under direct supervision”.

But, ultimately, the board decided he was not yet ready for parole, and would not be until he had completed the ”short intervention programme”.

”We believe all of the proposals for conditions are sound, but that leaves us still with the decision as to whether Mr Shepherd can satisfy us that he no longer poses an undue risk… and that such risk as he does pose can be adequately managed on parole.”

Although the board received letters of support from whanu and community, the submissions from his victims were damning, the board said.

”These submissions strongly assert that Mr Shepherd has used Maori institutions, Tikanga Maori, Te Reo Maori, and Maori education to further his own ends and to cover his behaviour.

”By way of conclusion, the submissions say that Mr Shepherd is manipulative and untrustworthy. They say that he has used his influence for his own ends and dressed this up as helping others.”

Shepherd will be seen again in July next year, following with an updated psychologist assessment.

Source

No parole for ‘deviant’ principal

Story by Craig Boyer. 7 August 2013

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/9013153/No-parole-for-deviant-principal

From jail to mansion for conman Michael Andrew Swann

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A FRAUDSTER who still owes millions of dollars will be freed from jail to live with a prominent Christchurch businessman in his Banks Peninsular mansion.

Michael Andrew Swann, 51, will be paroled to Alasdair Cassels’ Governors Bay property, valued at about $1.35 million.

The home has an indoor pool, harbour views and is surrounded by a vineyard.

Mr Cassels confirmed yesterday that Swann would be living with him and his family, but only for a short time.

He said he received a call for help from Swann, who needed a place to stay after the Parole Board ruled another proposed address was unsuitable.

Mr Cassels first met Swann many years ago, but did not consider him a close friend. “The guy’s served his time and he’s trying to get himself rehabilitated – trying to get himself back into the workforce. Why should he be cast on the rubbish heap?”

Swann will be employed  by a Christchurch company doing engineering and biotech work.

Swann’s release from Christchurch Men’s Prison comes after he has served less than half of his jail sentence. His release date is July 31.

Swann and his associate, Kerry Harford, were found guilty in 2008 of defrauding the then–Otago District Health Board of about $16.9m by invoicing the board for bogus computer-related services.

Swann, the health board IT manager at the time, was sentenced to nine-and-a-half years’ jail with a non-parole period of four and-a-half years. He was ordered to repay the Crown $9.5m.

A Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment spokesperson said yesterday that only $3.2m had been recovered through the sale of seized assets, but the case “remains open”.

Swann has acknowledged it is unlikely he will ever be able to repay the sum in full.

Former health board chairman Richard Thomson, who was sacked by Health Minister Tony Ryall after Swann was sentenced, said he was angry the “sociopath” would be released at his first attempt at parole.

Mr Thomson, now a Southern District Health Board member and a Dunedin city councillor, said Swann still refused to co-operate with the district health board over outstanding legal matters.

His refusal to sign a document continued to cost it money.

“He’s a nasty piece of work,” Mr Thomson said.

Swann had hoped to live at his boss’ address, but the Parole Board was concerned at the potential for “collusion”.

Swann appeared before the Parole Board again last month.

A psychologist’s report assessed Swann as at low risk of reoffending and prison staff supported him in letters to the board.

As part of his release conditions, he is not to be involved in the oversight of any business, or handle another person’s money or invoices relating to any business or commercial enterprise.

Source:

The Dominion Post. Tuseday, July 16, 2013, p. A2

Story by Blair Ensor

Fairfax NZ

Further reading:

1. SPCS Report: 11/11/2010

https://www.spcs.org.nz/2010/michael-swann-checketts-mckay-fraud-and-otago-dhbs-missing-6-million-report/

2. Convicted fraudster Swann freed

by Rosie Manins. 16 July 2013

http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/264949/convicted-fraudster-swann-freed

Quote:

Former ODHB chairman Richard Thomson said Swann’s release was not a surprise, but it was disappointing. He said Swann was not remorseful and the only lesson he had learned was not to get caught.

”My understanding is he will be going to live in a property that most of us can only dream about. And he will be doing so despite continuing to cause the population of Otago and Southland lost health opportunities as a result of his refusal during his prison term to engage with the board.”

Mr Thomson was board chairman for part of the time when Swann’s fraud occurred and consequently was sacked from that position in 2009 by Health Minister Tony Ryall. He remains a member of the Southern District Health Board.

Mr Thomson said Swann had caused the board ongoing legal costs but could have prevented the extra expense ”with a signature and at no cost to himself”.

”I believe he’s done that deliberately, and I find it extraordinary the parole board has either not sought to establish whether he has co-operated in any way, or that the parole board has not considered his failure to do so indicative of his lack of remorse.

”The primary issue is whether this man co-operated to put right what he did that was wrong and I know, but am not at liberty to detail, that he has failed to do so.

”That to me is indicative of both his personality and of his complete absence of remorse,” Mr Thomson said.

Battle against child pornography is global fight without borders

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IN NEW ZEALAND we are well aware that we lag behind similar developed countries in rankings for child pornography.

Our abuse figures continue to shame us. Stories of neglect and cruelty are daily media events.

But another level of abhorrence was added last week with the story of a child in California bought, adopted and traded for the purposes of satisfying paedophiles across three continents.

The perpetrators of this crime were tracked and the child rescued – with credit due to investigators at the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs, police, Customs officials and others. New Zealand is a leader in the global effort to combat activities such as this and its ugly cousin child pornography.

Our Department of Internal Affairs has been at the forefront of this worldwide effort to find and bring to account purveyors of activities that sexually exploit children.

The Innovative Super Squirrel Hunter software at Internal Affairs has been customised for more than 20 other countries and is hailed worldwide as a major tool in the campaign to free children from sexual exploitation.

In 2011, six men associated with what was described as the world’s biggest paedophile ring, were charged with child pornography offences committed in New Zealand.

At that time Detective Senior Sergeant John Michael said he believed it was likely to be the tip of the iceberg. “It’s rampant in New Zealand and if the public knew the scale of the offence here, they would be appalled.”

The attitudes and behaviour of consumers of child pornography around the world degrades and puts all children including our own, at risk.

It is a borderless crime.

Behind every single one of those images is a real child looking to the adult world to protect them. A report from Unicef in 2009 estimated millions of victims and stated that boys and girls of all ages and backgrounds and in every region of the world were subjected to this type of sexual abuse and exploitation.

The creators and clientele of the child pornography industry are unrelenting in their pursuit of victims. The child at the centre of last week’s case was a baby when he was purchased for the purpose of sexual exploitation.

Especially concerning is that in most cases no-one knows who or where these children are and rescuing them from exploitation is deeply challenging. The expertise and experience of the investigator at Internal Affairs in New Zealand was the vital connection that led to the rescue of the little boy.

But the practice will continue until there is widespread awareness and acknowledgement that wherever such images originate, children are severely harmed.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child endorsed by every country in the world, and which New Zealand signed up to in 1993, obligates our state agencies to act always in the best interests of children. Article 34 commits us to protect children from any kind of sexual abuse.

We applaud the police, Internal Affairs and Customs for their vigilance and dedication to protecting children.

We need to continue our support and investment in these programmes to ensure that the evil industry cannot flourish here in New Zealand.

Author: Barbara Lambourn, national advocacy manager, Unicef NZ.

Source: The Dominion Post. Friday, Jukly 12, 2013, p. A9

More kids committing sexual abuse due to easy access to hardcore porn

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Easy access to increasingly hardcore pornography and the sexualisation of childhood are being blamed for a rise in the number of children sexually abusing each other.

Growing numbers of children and teenagers are committing acts of sexual abuse against other children every year, with some as young as 11 being prosecuted for sexual offences.

Experts are calling for compulsory cyber-education programmes in all schools from primary level to stem the impact of explicit material.

Ministry of Justice figures received under the Official Information Act show that, since 2008, there have been 1299 prosecutions for sexual offences brought against young people under the age of 18.

This has risen steadily over the past five years, with 314 prosecutions last year compared to 204 in 2008. These are for offences ranging from rape to indecent assault and sexual grooming, with victims, both male and female, under the age of 16.

The youngest offender was 11. Only one of the offenders was a girl. Police say the jump in prosecutions was due to better knowledge and increased reporting of sexual abuse, rather than a rise in incidents.

To read full story go to:

More Kids Committing Sexcual Abuse – Story by Michelle Duff

8 July 2013

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/8889144/More-kids-committing-sexual-abuse

Web giants unite to stop child abuse – NZ Herald

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The world’s largest and most popular internet sites are in secret discussions to create a system that could wipe child abuse images from the web.

Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Twitter and at least three other companies have signed up to, or are talking about, the project which would lead to the creation of a single database.

The project is an unprecedented industry-wide effort to deal with paedophiles sharing abuse images on the web. Industry sources told theTimes newspaper in London that some of the companies had signed secrecy agreements and there had been tense negotiations for about nine months.

It’s believed silence was required to ensure the “rival companies could have frank discussions about the topic”, the newspaper said.

The database of the “worst of the worst” images will be maintained by Thorn: Digital Defenders of Children.

Executive director of Thorn, Julie Cordua, told the Times that they wanted to clean “this horrific content off platforms” and to identify the victims.

The Los Angeles-based charity was founded by the formerly married actors Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore.

The companies involved have adopted Microsoft’s PhotoDNA software that creates a “hash” or digital signature on abuse images.

Source

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/pornography/news/article.cfm?c_id=283&objectid=10895082

Saturday Jul 6, 2013