Crimes NZ

Stuff's senior crime reporter tells Jesse Mulligan about his ongoing hunt for one of Aotearoa's most prolific conmen.

For two decades Wayne Eaglesome has committed hundreds of crimes across the country.

He has used 40 different aliases and has been convicted of 250 offences, for both fraud and sexual crimes.

Stuff senior crime reporter Sam Sherwood came across Eaglesome several years ago and has followed his nefarious career both in Aotearoa and now, across the world.

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In this episode we hear about one of our country's most sensational trials - that of headhunters gang member Pedro Cleven.

Through the late 90s and into the early 2000s police ran operation Mexico in a strike a blow at the Headhunters gang.

They nabbed Peter 'Pedro' Cleven on cannabis and methamphetamine charges and what followed as a trial like no other.

Patrick Gower talks to Jesse Mulligan about covering the sensational trial of headhunters gang member Pedro Cleven.

Journalist Patrick Gower was just a cadet reporter for the New Zealand Herald back then and recalls sitting through the unforgettable court case.

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It was a case that shocked the world. A 3-year-old abandoned in an Australian train station, her mother murdered in New Zealand and her father on the run in America.

In September 2007 a three-year-old girl was found abandoned at Melbourne's Southern Cross railway station.

Initially authorities were unable to verify her identity, so they gave her the nickname "Pumpkin" after the Pumpkin Patch branded clothing she was wearing.

But "Pumpkin" was actually Qian Xun Xue and her father Nai Yin Xue abandoned her after killing her mother back in New Zealand.

Simon Scott was the Detective Senior Sergeant in charge of the investigation that crossed three international borders.

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In January 2008, Gil Elliott received the worst news possible. His 22-year-old daughter Sophie had been stabbed to death. He talks to Jesse Mulligan about those moments, the horror that followed and his fight for change.

In 2008, Sophie Elliot was stabbed to death by her former partner, Clayton Weatherston.

Since her death, her family have been tirelessly campaigning for changes to prevent another case like hers.

Gil Elliott talks to Jesse about the dreadful events of January 2008 and the fight for victims rights and changes to policies to stop academic staff having relationships with students.

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The 1928 murder of Elsie Walker is one of New Zealand's oldest cold cases. She disappeared from the Bay of Plenty and her body was discovered by schoolboys, days later, in Auckland.

Elsie Walker went missing from the Bay of Plenty and was found dead in Auckland days later.

She was discovered by some young boys and was still wearing her maid's uniform.

Crime author, Scott Bainbridge wrote about this mysterious case in his book Shot in the Dark. He talks to Charlotte Ryan about the details of Elsie's life and death.

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In 2009, Taito Phillip Field was convicted of bribery and corruption and sentenced to six years in prison. Lockwood Smith was an opposition MP and recalls keeping the pressure on in parliament, to ensure Field was held to account.

Taito Phillip Field was a minister in the Labour government when he was accused of using his position for personal gain.

The Right Honourable Sir Lockwood Smith was Opposition spokesperson on Immigration when the allegations first came to light and maintained continued pressure on the Minister during parliament question time.

Taito Phillip Field eventually went to prison following a police investigation, becoming the first member of parliament to be convicted of bribery and corruption in New Zealand.

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In 2007, 20-year-old Emma Agnew put a sign up in her car advertising it for sale. A man answered the ad, but he wasn't interested in buying the car. As Stuff senior reporter Martin Van Beynan describes his intentions were far more sinister.

20-year-old Emma Agnew disappeared in November 2007.

Emma and her entire immediate family were deaf and well-known within New Zealand's deaf community.

The alarm was raised almost immediately, but it would be 12 days before her body would be found in forest north of Christchurch.

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Emma Ferris loaned $300,000 to her boyfriend only to discover he was conning her. In this episode of Crimes NZ, Emma describes the battle for her life-savings and her future.

In 2018 Emma Ferris began relationship with Andrew Thomson, an entrepreneur with colourful stories about his past and future ventures.

Emma loaned a large sum to the conman believing it was destined for legitimate investment. The very next day she found out he wasn't who he said he was.

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In 1886 the bustling town of Timaru was stunned when society darling Thomas Hall was arrested for the attempted murder of his wife, Kitty. Author Peter Graham outlines one of the most sensational cases of 19th century New Zealand.

In 1886, as he sentenced Thomas Hall to life in prison for the attempted poisoning of his wife Kitty Hall, the presiding judge said: "You have achieved in the annals of crime the position of being the vilest criminal ever tried in New Zealand."

Tom Hall was part of a rich and influential family in Timaru, but when he ran into financial troubles, his solution was to marry a rich wife, have a child with her and then kill her.

Peter Graham, author of Vile Crimes: the Timaru Poisonings recounts his discoveries of what might be New Zealand's first celebrity trial.

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