Interview could re-traumatise

Young women sexually attacked by the Roast Busters gang face being re-traumatised by a TV interview with one of the gang members last night, according to a victims’ advocate.

Louise Nicholas said yesterday she disagreed with Joseph Lavell Parker, son of Hollywood actor Anthony Ray Parker and one of the group’s alleged ring leaders, being given a prominent interview by Newshub to defend himself.

In 2013, it was revealed a group of young men based in Auckland were allegedly gang raping intoxicated underage girls, and boasting about it on social media.

After an 18-month investigation, police didn’t lay charges due to a lack of evidence.

Newshub said that in the interview Parker said: ‘‘We did a lot of things wrong.

‘‘But at the same time we also weren’t the monsters that everybody thought that we were. We didn’t do all the things that people thought we did.’’

Nicholas criticised the decision to air the interview, saying: ‘‘They’re giving this guy the airtime to say, ‘We were a bad bunch of buggers but hey, we didn’t really do anything wrong’. Well, sunshine, look back on Facebook. That clearly shows you were targeting young girls.

‘‘For those that felt they had been harmed by these guys, where’s their voice?

‘‘It’s just going to re-traumatise and re-victimise them. I think that’s wrong,’’ she said.

Newshub said it would be broadcasting its full interview with Parker tonight.

Before the case came to national prominence, police had been investigating the group since 2011 after girls as young as 13 had come forward to lay complaints. The scope of the investigation was later revealed, with police saying that 35 males were assessed as ‘‘persons of interest’’ and 110 girls were canvassed.

Officers said they would not be laying charges as there was not a reasonable chance of getting a conviction.

Detective Inspector Karyn Malthus said the investigation highlighted some significant issues for New Zealand including the prevalence of alcohol in teenagers’ lives and the poor understanding among males and females as to what ‘‘consent’’ was in a sexual setting.

‘‘For those that felt they had been harmed by these guys, where’s their voice?’’

Louise Nicholas