The Parole Board’s chairperson has claimed Corrections’ provided wrong information which led to killer Joseph Brider moving next door to his victim.

Juliana Bonilla-Herrera from Colombia was brutally murdered by Brider in January last year.

Chair New Zealand Parole Board Chair Sir Ron Young released a statement on Friday.

“On Wednesday 1 February I released an independent report from Professor Devon Polaschek into the Parole Board’s decision in October 2021 to release Joseph Brider on parole.

In her review, Professor Polaschek had concluded the Parole Board’s decision to release Brider was reasonable based on the information available to it.

I had earlier spoken to Juliana Herrera’s sister in Colombia, to go through the report’s findings and answer any questions the family had.”

Young said “Yesterday I spoke with Radio NZ’s Morning Report programme about the decision to release Brider and the information the Parole Board was provided with by the Department of Corrections on which it based its release decision.

The Salisbury Street Foundation was the Board’s preferred release address and was discussed extensively at Brider’s June 2021 parole hearing.”

Young said “I told both Ms Herrera’s sister and Radio NZ the Parole Board was unable to release Brider to the Salisbury Street Foundation.

This was because according to the information provided by Corrections to the Parole Board’s October 2021 parole hearing, there was no room available for Brider at the Salisbury Street Foundation.

This was also the information provided to Professor Polaschek to inform her independent review of the Parole Board’s decision.”

Young said “I now believe the information provided to the Board by Corrections that there was no room available at the Salisbury Street Foundation for a release on parole was not correct.

It is my understanding that after the June 2021 parole hearing, where it was clearly intended that Brider would be released to the Salisbury Street Foundation, Corrections contacted the Foundation and cancelled the referral. This occurred in August of 2021.”

Young said “The Parole Board was not made aware of this significant change in the release plan by Corrections at any time before Brider’s release on parole.

The Salisbury Street Foundation now told the Board that they had a bed available for Brider if he had been released in June and would have still made a room available for him following the October parole hearing.”

“Given the Board’s clear commitment to releasing Brider to the Salisbury Street Foundation, as shown in the Board’s hearing decision of June 2021, this was a very serious failure by Corrections to tell the Board of the cancellation.

It is the Parole Board and not Corrections that decides where an offender may be released to on parole. To do that effectively the Board relies on accurate information from Corrections.

Corrections had no authority from the Board to withdraw the application to the Salisbury Street Foundation when it was aware that was the Board’s preferred address and that a bed was available for Mr Brider.

It is clear to me that Corrections’ failure to provide this vital information compromised the Board’s decision-making.

The Board would most definitely have released Mr Brider to the Salisbury Street Foundation if it had known the correct facts.”

Corrections’ Chief Executive Jeremy Lightfoot told Chris Lynch Media “today, the New Zealand Parole Board has made a claim regarding allegedly conflicting information provided to them to assist in their decision to release Joseph Brider to a specified address in the community. 

 We have not yet been able to substantiate whether this claim is correct. I take any allegation raising concerns about information we provide to the New Zealand Parole Board extremely seriously.”

Lightfoot said “that’s why I have called for an independent review into this claim.

I am determined to understand exactly what has occurred here so Juliana’s family have the clarity they so rightly deserve. I would like to apologise for any distress this has caused them during what has already been a difficult and traumatic week.

“I expect this review to quickly and clearly outline what information led to the Parole Board being advised in the final Parole Assessment Report prepared by Corrections that a bed at Salisbury Street Foundation was not guaranteed. 

“I also expect this review to identify any changes that can be made to further strengthen information sharing between Corrections and the Parole Board.”

The following excerpt was provided to the New Zealand Parole Board in the Parole Assessment Report for the October 2021 parole hearing:

““Whilst his release to the Salisbury Street Foundation (SSF) has previously been advised to the NZPB, in preparation of his October 2021 appearance, an alternative release proposal has been required to be pursued with [withheld due to suppression orders]; continuing his engagement with the [withheld due to suppression orders] into the community and their accommodation service. This alternative release proposal has been pursued as Corrections were advised by SSF that the service could not guarantee a bed will be available for Mr Brider at his release/end date, alongside concerns raised around an insufficient time remaining on his sentence to fully engage in SSF’s intensive programme.”