Face to face with the Beast
Blair
Ensor SERIAL sex predator Stewart Murray Wilson has apologised to the people of Whanganui as it emerges he has left his new home to go shopping and fishing.
Speaking publicly for the first time since he was convicted of a raft of horrific sexual crimes nearly two decades ago, the man dubbed The Beast of Blenheim has revealed to The Dominion Post his desire to socialise with women again, his dismay at being kept from his daughter, and his disappointment at the strict parole conditions surrounding his release a month ago.
From his temporary home on Whanganui Prison grounds, Wilson maintained his ‘‘not guilty status’’ and refused to say sorry to his victims. He plans to appeal to the Privy Council against his convictions.
‘‘Maybe I have inadvertently harmed people with what I’ve said and the way I’ve done things.
‘‘Why should I give in to take away my own credibility with any admission of any form of guilt now. I’ve done the time. You can’t put a person in jail and make them do extra years and then tell them to say sorry.
‘‘In 2008 I did apologise in the High Court in Christchurch. I said that if people felt I had harmed or hurt them in the past I was sorry.
‘‘As far as I’m concerned, I made my apology and if people don’t want to remember, and criticise me for not being human, I can’t do anything about that.’’
He did, however, offer an apology to the people of Whanganui for causing so much anguish in their community.
‘‘I’m sorry I’ve been bundled into your society and I’m sorry I’ve caused so many problems, but I have no intention of causing anyone any harm at any time,’’ he said. ‘‘It wasn’t my choice to come here.’’
Wilson, 65, was jailed for 21 years in 1996 after his conviction on 22 sex charges against women and children between 1971 and 1994.
He was freed from prison into self-care unit No 5 in the Whanganui Prison grounds on August 29 after five failed bids for release. He will move into a twobedroom home nearby next week.
Wilson insists he has changed a lot since he was convicted and sent to jail. ‘‘I’m a lot older, I’m a lot slower, I’ve got a lot more mellow, but I’m still a human being. I’m not out to hurt anyone or harm anyone or do anything stupid.
‘‘I’m not bitter, I’m not twisted and I just want to get on and continue my life with a bit more freedom.’’
He was frustrated with the strict conditions of release imposed by the Parole Board.
‘‘I’m not out of prison. [Inside] you were not kept away from all family and all your visitors – I could share a cup of coffee with a chaplain or officer.
‘‘The situation up here – none of my visitors are allowed a drink with me for fear I might drug them. It’s just OTT [over the top] all the way.’’
He had, however, enjoyed the chance to go shopping and fishing, even if joined by a team of minders. ‘‘I’ve been down fishing a couple of times with my minders and I’m the only one who has caught any fish and they are really pissed off.’’
On Monday he was recognised by two women as he loaded items into his trolley at a supermarket in central Whanganui.
‘‘They just gave me a smile and a little wave and one of them said, ‘hello, Murray’.’’
He said he had received other offers of support from the community.
Members of Wanganui District Council had been ‘‘scaremongering and frightening people’’ largely because they had been misinformed, he said.
He took aim at councillor Michael Laws, who had been very vocal on the issue, and told him to ‘‘look in the mirror at himself’’.
Wilson said he did not believe he should be trespassed from areas of Whanganui, but it was unlikely he would fight any orders imposed by the council.
Trespassing him from parts of the town would help fuel any request by him to move to another area of New Zealand, he said.
He does not fear for his safety and believes the initial reaction of many Whanganui residents was to be expected. ‘‘I believe that it was the shock of somebody being dumped on them that didn’t want to be dumped here in the first place.
‘‘The Whanganui people and the prison officers have treated me very well – better than I could hope to receive in a South Island prison.
‘‘I’m no threat to anybody and I want to be left alone.’’
Retired Blenheim detective Colin Mackay, who led the 18-month investigation into Wilson’s offending, disagrees and believes he remains at ‘‘substantial risk’’ of reoffending.
‘‘[Maintaining a not guilty status] tells me that he therefore believes it’s quite acceptable to do what he did because it wasn’t a crime.’’