YEAR IN REVIEW

the elephant, before returning it to the Oldridges.

Police said garden-ornament thefts were rife in the Manawatu town at that time.

Greg Oldridge found a way to stop the elephant going missing again – a chain and a padlock.

Seven years’ jail for runaway

The path to prison was a long one for Michael Edward Farley.

Farley ended up being sentenced to seven years’ jail for a range of crimes, including fleeing the country to avoid getting sentenced for perverting the course of justice.

The ironic part is that he ended up in jail while trying to hide in Canada, after abducting a prostitute there.

He fled New Zealand in 2011, cutting off his home detention anklet and using a false passport to evade authorities, to escape a likely jail term for the perverting charge. But he was deported to New Zealand after serving his jail time in Canada for the abduction.

Cat crusade reaches Manawatu

Gareth Morgan’s crusade against cats killing native wildlife hit the Horizons Regional Council.

His foundation spoke to the council and said it was keen for mandatory microchipping, as it would allow people who let their cats roam far into wildlife reserves to be told where their moggies were marauding.

It also asked the council to make a clear definition about what constitutes a feral cat.