Are the New Zealand Police performing there duty correctly?.

First off I am not Knocking NZ police but there are good and bad decision's made in every force.



I recently heard a story about a young woman (early 30's) from England whom was on a working holiday in New Zealand, not unusual many of us have relatives there since most New Zealanders have British ancestry.

Now this young lady by the name of Stephanie Simpson had told her friends that she was going hiking in advance and had set off for a scenic region of the country, she was fairly experienced and very physically fit according to the police so was unlikely to make a rash mistake but after setting of her family had not heard from her and she had not turned up for work as she was working as a gardener so people began to become concerned.

According to the Media her body was found some day's later AFTER a Back Pack and HIKING BOOT's thought to be Her's were found nearby.

Have you ever tried to pull a hiking boot off - you have to unlace the thing first.

She could have gone for a swim if the weather was hot and gotten into difficulty BUT the police stressed that the terrain was difficult and thanked everyone that had helped in the search - in other words DIFFICULT TO PROPERLY INVESTIGATE.

Here is the story.
www.msn.com... rtandhp
Sorry MSN is a pain that link did not work here is a BBC link.
www.bbc.co.uk...


Now if this was an accident it is tragic, a beautiful young woman has lost her life BUT if this was a murder it was heinous and the police have left a potential repeat offender out there somewhere to attack again as well as denying this young lady and her family as well as there own local NZ community justice.

I just feel that there is something off about this case, it does not feel like a suicide or accident to me for some reason and just smell's if I may use that term very bad to my senses.

Just a clarification, an experienced hiker put's there boot's on properly so they don't tend to wash off even if you do fall into a river, that sound's more like someone shoved her boot's back on and dumped her into the water.

I do hope I am wrong and if so apologize unreservedly to the NZ police but like I say I just FEEL there is something very off about this case, I know the terrain is difficult but this need's a proper forensic investigation.

Just a clarification, an experienced hiker put's there boot's on properly so they don't tend to wash off even if you do fall into a river, that sound's more like someone shoved her boot's back on and dumped her into the water.

From the article..

It seemed that she had left the hiking track, taken off her boots and gone into a waterfall, he said.

Hiking in rough terrain, feet and legs get tired and sweaty, she takes her boots off, wades into the water, falls/trips
[ maybe a slick rock ] hits her head and drowns.
The article goes on to say the case will be turned over to the coroner, so they will do an autopsy to determine cause of death and determine if foul play was involved.

a reply to: DAVID64

One reason I switched to hiking sandals when I hike. Weather permitting. I got tired of jumping from slippery rock to rock to try to keep my low profile boots from getting sopping wet. Just takes one bad jump and /or a twisted ankle to ruin a good hike. Now I hike through whatever in my sandals.

Probably would need to see her feet to make a more informed decision but there are many reasons to take off boots such as tiredness, starting to get a hint of a blister or socks getting wet as walking in wet shoes makes your feet swell and then if you take them off its flipping hard to get them back on or just found a nice spot and decided to give the tootsies a cooling refresh.

You can probably tell certain things from what she packed (if anything) to go out for the walk as that will tell you what sort of time frame she had in mind.

Also just because she's experienced doesn't mean much as you might be used to more mountainous areas with little to no vegetation not a more densely packed vegetation area and not be aware of the difference and with probably limited local knowledge maybe theres something like a poisonous plant that she didn't avoid?

All of your thought's are more than reasonable and it could just be an unfortunate accident but like I say I just had a gut feeling for some reason that there was more to this case, hopefully I am wrong but if not then I hope the one responsible get's there just desert's before they can harm again.

Either way God bless her family and friend's and keep her safe on the other side.

a reply to: LABTECH767

i agree but as a retired hiker the unwritten rule never go hiking alone especially the rugged country were she was to easy to trip break a leg anything always pair up

originally posted by: Steveogold
i agree but as a retired hiker the unwritten rule never go hiking alone especially the rugged country

I pretty much always go hiking alone. The trick is to let people know where you are going and when you will be back. It's a sensible precaution to go with others if you are not an antisocial grumpy bastard like me!

To the OP. This sounds like a tragic accident. There is no reason to think the New Zealand authorities are at fault or somehow negligent.

a reply to: paraphi

i miss the hikes i had to give up on health grounds