‘Relief’ after pair jailed for life for murder

AUCKLAND: The widow of slain Red Fox Tavern publican Christopher Bush has welcomed a ‘‘sense of relief and justice’’ after the two culprits were jailed for life.

Gaye Bush said yesterday’s sentencing brought an end to a ‘‘painful chapter’’ of her life 33 years after the murder.

‘‘Having some closure after all these years brings about a sense of relief and justice for the family and it is now time to move forward and put this painful chapter behind us,’’ she said.

Mark Joseph Hoggart, and a second man with name suppression, were found guilty in March of aggravated robbery and the murder of fatheroftwo Mr Bush.

The pair will be eligible for parole after serving 10 years in prison, as the law requires they be sentenced according to penalties available in 1987 when the murder happened.

The two men were found guilty after a sevenweek trial in the High Court at Auckland.

Mr Bush was killed when two heavily disguised robbers burst in through a back door of the Maramarua tavern on October 24, 1987.

Yesterday, Hoggart and his accomplice were both sentenced to life imprisonment.

‘‘Someone was killed for no good reason out of the blue,’’ Crown prosecutor Anna Devathasan said.

‘‘Those ripples are enormous and they persist 33 years later.

‘‘This was not a robbery gone wrong. It was a successful robbery . . . which the offenders nearly got away with.

‘‘The one positive that’s uniformly expressed in the victim impact statements is that after this enormous passage of time, this matter was brought to trial and this verdict delivered.’’

One person who presented a victim impact statement said the guilty verdicts provided closure for the family and for the north Waikato town.

Hoggart appeared to acknowledge a supporter when he entered the courtroom.

Both men were silent and motionless when asked if they wanted to say anything before sentencing.

The Crown said even if the shooting was not planned in advance, it could not be deemed an accidental or even reckless shooting.

‘‘This case continues to throw up unusual and somewhat complicated issues,’’ said Christopher Stevenson, defence lawyer for the man with name suppression.

He said the shooting was ‘‘a reflexive action’’ and his client maintained his innocence.

The shooter retains name suppression until he decides whether or not to lodge an appeal.

‘‘It is a highly unusual case,’’ Hoggart’s defence counsel, Craig Tuck, said.

‘‘And in relation to Mr Hoggart, less culpability can be attributed.’’

Hoggart was armed with a baseball bat and his accomplice with the shotgun.

Mr Bush was shot, then three bar staff were tied up and the robbers made off with about $36,000 from the safe.

Yesterday, Detective Sergeant Mike Hayward of Counties Manukau police said the guilty verdicts had brought huge relief to Mr Bush’s family and Maramarua.

He said the members of the Bush family he had spoken to were elated yesterday.

‘‘No family should have to endure 33 years for justice.’’

He hoped former bar staff would also take comfort from the life sentences imposed, Det Sgt Hayward said.

He also paid tribute to police who worked on two earlier investigations decades ago.

‘‘The work the initial investigators did back in 1987 and 1999, this whole case to date has been based on the foundations by those guys.’’

Mr Bush was 43 years old. — Hamilton News

❛ This was not a robbery gone wrong. It was a successful robbery . . . which the offenders

nearly got away with