Grace Millane: New Zealand PM issues apology to family of murdered British backpacker
Jacinda Ardern calls 22-year-old's death a source of 'overwhelming sense of hurt and shame' in emotional address
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The prime minister of New Zealand has issued a heartfelt apology to the family of murdered British backpacker Grace Millane, saying her killing was a cause of national “shame”.
Jacinda Ardern spoke as a 26-year-old man accused of killing Ms Millane, 22, made his first appearance in court.
Ms Millane’s father David travelled to New Zealand last week after their daughter went missing on the New Zealand leg of a planned year-long trip around the world. Police found her body in a forest near Auckland on Sunday.
The prime minister addressed the family in comments during her weekly media briefing on Monday, her voice at times breaking with emotion.
“On behalf of New Zealand, I want to apologise to Grace’s family,” Ms Ardern said. “Your daughter should have been safe here, and she wasn’t. And I’m sorry for that.
“From the kiwis [New Zealanders] I have spoken to, there is this overwhelming sense of hurt and shame that this has happened in our country, a place that prides itself on our hospitality.”
Ms Ardern admitted it was not ordinarily the place of the prime minister to apologise for individual acts of violence. But she said she felt compelled to by that sense of national shame, and that many New Zealanders were taking the case personally.
Earlier, the 26-year-old man accused of killing Ms Millane stared at the floor while a judge addressed him during his brief appearance at the Auckland District Court.
He has been charged with murder and has not yet entered a plea. His name cannot be reported at this time, as his lawyers appeal for it to be suppressed on the basis that revealing it would prejudice his right to a fair trial.
Judge Evangelos Thomas addressed David Millane and other family members in court, saying: ”I don’t know what to say to you at this time, but your grief must be desperate,” according to television station Three.
“We all hope justice will be fair and swift and ultimately bring you some peace.”
As the man was led away from the dock, somebody in the public gallery yelled out “Scumbag!”.
Described by her father as fun-loving and family-oriented, Ms Millane had been travelling in New Zealand after beginning her trip in Peru. She went missing on 1 December and failed to get in touch with her family on her birthday the next day, or on the days that followed, which alarmed them.
Before she vanished, Ms Millane had been staying at a backpacker hostel in Auckland and left some of her belongings there. Detective Inspector Scott Beard said she met a man for a couple of hours in the evening before surveillance cameras showed them entering the CityLife hotel at about 9.40pm.
A week after Ms Millane disappeared, police detained a man for questioning and later charged him with murder.
On Sunday, police found a body in a forested area about 10m (33ft) from the side of the road in the Waitakere Ranges near Auckland. Police believe Ms Millane’s body was taken to the area in a rental car.
Police said the car, a red Toyota Corolla, was rented for 24 hours and returned to an Auckland rental agency on 3 December, meaning Ms Millane’s body could have been in the forest for six days before it was found.
The suspect who appeared in court on Monday is being held in custody and is scheduled to make his next court appearance on 23 January.
Candlelit vigils for Ms Millane are being prepared across New Zealand, while the case has also sparked a debate about whether New Zealand is still safe for female backpackers and whether the killing would discourage women from travelling there alone.
New Zealand is among the best 50 countries and territories in the world in terms of its homicide rate, ahead of the UK, France, Germany and Sweden. The latest police figures suggest there were just 35 murders in 2017 – a 40-year low for the country.
Additional reporting by agencies
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