Mass murderer denied parole 30 years on
Mass murderer Raymond Ratima, who has been denied parole for the 14th time, had wanted to live with his new partner.
But the Parole Board ruled that the killings, which happened because of a relationship breakdown, made the prospect of him living with a new partner a concern.
Ratima killed his three sons, Piri, 6, Barney, 4, and Stacey, 2, in their grandparents’ Masterton home on
June 26, 1992.
Ratima, who is now in his mid-50s, also killed their uncle, 14-year-old Phillip Ferguson Jr, their aunt
Nicola Ferguson, her partner Bevan Tepu, Nicola and Bevan’s 2-year-old son Steven, and the couple’s unborn baby, who was just a month away from birth.
For the past six years Ratima has been in a relationship with his current partner, who regularly visits him in prison.
Parole Board chairperson Sir Ron Young noted a psychological report had made it clear that, due to the murders having been triggered, at least in part, by the breakdown of a relationship, the two may never be able to live together.
Ratima referred to his partner as his ‘‘rock’’ and when the report was discussed with his partner they ‘‘became upset and asked on several occasions when they could begin living together’’.
‘‘We are concerned about a prospective release into a relationship and the capacity of Corrections to supervise any conditions prohibiting cohabitation,’’ Young said.
Young wrote that, when questioned about the circumstances that led to the killings, Ratima’s explanations ‘‘revolved around his feelings of frustration’’ after he was separated from his partner and denied access to his children.
‘‘Many families are in the kind of situation, tragically, described by Mr Ratima when a relationship ends. But Mr Ratima’s killing of seven people plus the unborn child takes it out of the realm of the ordinary and well beyond that,’’ Young said.
Ratima is eligible for parole again in April 2024.