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Allegations of Sexual
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The Northern Advocate
English travellers, from left,
Lizzie Chitty, Tori Chitty and Samantha Hunt. Picture/Tania Webb Despite two horrific sex attacks
at Haruru Falls, tourism operators are hoping visitors won't shun the popular
Northland beauty spot. Last night the attacker -
described as blue-eyed with short brown hair, and possibly North American -
remained on the loose, with police admitting they were unsure if he was even
still in the Bay of Islands. Yesterday Haruru Falls was back to
its usual tranquillity with no sign that a vicious attack had taken place two
days earlier. Around 5.30pm on Wednesday, a
27-year-old English woman was dragged from the walking track 1km from Haruru
Falls and sexually assaulted. Just over a year earlier, a
honeymooning Dutch couple were attacked as they slept in their campervan at
the Haruru Falls carpark. The new bride was raped. In that case, the
perpetrators were caught and jailed after an intensive police hunt. The track winds its way through
dense bush from the falls to the Waitangi Treaty Grounds and is currently
closed due to slips caused by last year's floods. A locked gate puts off many
walkers, making the track quieter and more isolated than usual. "Obviously I'd warn people to
stick to open walking tracks where more people are around," said Rhys
Johnston, the detective heading the investigation. The tourist, who was badly bruised
during the attack, is "getting better as time goes on but still deeply
traumatised". He said police had received calls
from around New Zealand in response to an identikit of the alleged
perpetrator. "The fact the Bay of Islands
is a tourist area and people often stay for only a day or two has hampered
the investigation," he said. Many businesses in the Bay rely on
tourism and are praying the second sex attack won't hurt visitor numbers. David Perks, chairman of Northland
Tourism Development group, said the two attacks at Haruru Falls were
"pure coincidence". "I think in any small community there is
always shock and sadness and sympathy for the woman - but in terms of the Bay
of Islands as a global tourist attraction, I don't believe the incident will
bring a negative effect. "We stress that all tourists
should take the same precautions in New Zealand that they would in their home
countries, for example not going to isolated places alone and letting people
know where you're going." However, the assertion that
tourists won't be put off could be mistaken, according to English travellers
at the falls yesterday. Tori Chitty, 19, Lizzie Chitty and
Samantha Hunt, both 22, arrived in the Bay of Islands yesterday and were
adamant they wouldn't be walking around Haruru Falls - something they had
planned to do. "It's definitely put me off,
especially as there has been two sex attacks so recent to each other. I
wouldn't walk around alone and now I know what's happened here I don't feel
very comfortable," Tori said. "It's quite terrifying and
the story will probably spread through the travelling community and put
people off visiting, at least while the attacker is still on the loose,"
Lizzie added. The trio admit they have taken
safety less seriously than they would at home in the UK. "I've felt pretty safe in New
Zealand but it only takes one horror story for people to think differently.
It wasn't long ago the Scottish girl got murdered in Taupo," Samantha
said. "You take more risks when
you're a traveller and you're probably quite an easy target. When you're
somewhere so beautiful you don't think anything horrible will happen. "It just shows that there are
nasty people everywhere."
Description
of alleged attacker: Male European; aged in his mid to
late 30s; dark brown hair, about a No.4 cut; a large ring on his right hand;
blue eyes and light stubble on his face; spoke with an accent, thought to be
North American; athletically built; wearing blue jeans and a navy blue
T-shirt with a white circular pattern on the front; carrying a backpack that
appeared to be full; barefoot at the time of the attack |
