Serial fraudster Fagan declined parole

A notorious criminal who once rang Sir Paul Holmes live on air while on the run has vowed to live a quiet life when released from jail.

John Grant Fagan told Holmes and his listeners he was an ‘‘armed maniac’’, but yesterday his declarations were more modest.

‘‘I have to realise my limits and lead a more simplistic life,’’ he told a New Zealand Parole Board panel at Rimutaka Prison in Upper Hutt.

Fagan, 58, is about 31⁄2 years into a five-year, one-month sentence for a multimillion-dollar fraud, escaping custody and kidnapping his now former wife.

Although he couldn’t convince the board he should be released from jail yet – he will be considered for parole again in six months – Fagan has undergone a major change.

He’s lost 45 kilograms from his once portly frame and now spends 60 to 90 minutes a day in the gym, saying he was using his time inside to change ‘‘physically and mentally’’.

At night-time, Fagan is allowed out of prison to work and his employer says they’re keen to keep his services.

If granted parole, Fagan would live with family in the Horowhenua-ka¯ piti area.

Panel convenor Justice Warwick Gendall told Fagan not to be ‘‘disheartened’’ with the board’s decision.

In a report, a psychologist said she could work with Fagan outside prison on identifying ‘‘triggers’’ to his offending and ways to avoid them, and if that failed, he could be recalled to jail.

But Gendall said the board couldn’t release Fagan unless it was satisfied he no longer posed a risk to the public.

When released, Fagan said he would spend his time working, keeping fit, watching sport, being involved in church groups and getting the help he needed.

‘‘The longer I can be managed by probation in the community would be a bonus, because it gives me boundaries,’’ he said.

Gendall asked Fagan how he feels about the victims of his crimes. ‘‘I obviously identify with the damage I have done to them and all I can do is ask for their forgiveness, I guess, because in the end it’s something I can’t change,’’ Fagan said.

‘‘My feelings are of great sadness for all of the damage I’ve done to others.’’

Fagan said he had low selfesteem during his crime spree and was trying to impress others.

He has racked up 139 convictions and his most highprofile offending happened in 1996 when he defrauded the Auckland school he worked at out of more than $1 million, fired a gun above a 16-year-old girl’s head and went on the run, calling Holmes.

In 2014, he was jailed for fraud and forgery.

That year, he escaped from a prison work party and, armed with a machete, confronted his then-wife. She fled unharmed.

Fagan said the family members who still support him say he will have no more chances.

The board will shortly release a full report with its reasons for declining parole.