Invercargill man Peter George Davis, 73, spent more than 30 years behind bars after the brutal 1992 attack on Sarah Jayne Curry, which sent shockwaves through the community and prompted public calls for the reintroduction of the death penalty.
The man raped and strangled the girl, and her body was found among pine trees and long grass at the edge of the city tip, only 150m from her home.
Davis was released from prison in June 2023 to the Manawatū-Whanganui area on a slew of stringent conditions, the Parole Board confirmed.
A former police officer connected to the case contacted the Otago Daily Times to highlight the release of the high-profile inmate, not because he was critical of the board’s decision, but because of concern the public had a right to know.
When he found out this week, he also informed Sarah’s Palmerston North-based uncle, Phil Corcoran, who was staggered by the news Davis was living in his region.
He said he was deeply concerned for the safety of his grandchildren.
A Parole Board spokesman said members of Sarah’s family who were on the Victim Notification Register were updated regarding his custodial status.
To be added to the register one had to apply to police, he said.
Mr Corcoran’s safety concerns were echoed by Sarah’s father, Brian.
In a letter to the Parole Board before his death in 2012, he said he would never come to terms with what happened to his daughter and he was "certain" Davis would reoffend if he was released.
"If he gets out, he will do it again," Mr Curry wrote.
The board, though, disagreed, noting the killer had completed "extensive" rehabilitation while in jail, including a specialist child-sex-offender programme, drug treatment and a year of individual sessions with a psychologist.
Davis’ parole conditions featured compulsory electronic monitoring, a ban from internet-capable devices and a restriction from loitering near schools, parks or other recreation facilities.
Two monitoring hearings held in the year following Davis’ release were broadly positive.
He had been reporting to Probation weekly, attended a relapse support group for child sex offenders, had joined Alcoholics Anonymous and was accompanied by a mentor when out in public.
However, a progress report in April 2024 said a psychologist had identified issues around "ruminative thinking".
Panel convener Annabel Markham noted the most recent information on Davis’ file put him at average risk of sexual reoffending.
However, the parolee was attending a church group and had recently returned a clean drug test, she said.
Davis sought increased access to the internet because he felt the need to "upskill", but that was knocked back by the board.
Mr Corcoran described his niece as having been friendly, cuddly and compassionate, and said the grief associated with her death never diminished.
"It’s still always there for me, and if it gets talked about ... it does just about bring me to tears," he said.
In the years before the murder, Davis had been convicted of attempted murder after he attacked his then-partner with a machete, and he was later responsible for a sexually motivated assault on an off-duty nurse.
Mr Corcoran said, despite the time behind bars, he did not believe Davis was capable of change.
"I’ll be keeping a sharp eye out," he said.
