He kept their passports, bank cards and wages, assaulted them and threatened both with deportation if they spoke out. The young male victim dreamt of finishing school, before he was put to work for 50 to 60 hours a week. When the woman raised the alarm four years later that Tuai had raped her, police also discovered the slavery both had suffered at Tuai’s hands. Ownership, possession, control, threatsTuai did not allow the victims to talk to each other, even when they were eating at the same table. So too was Joseph Matamata, who in 2020 became the first New Zealander convicted of both slavery and human trafficking.

Nationally, nearly half a million new sporting and recreational injury claims were lodged in 2024. ACC says nearly 70,000 people are injured through outdoor recreation activities, mainly enjoyed over the summer each year. It says most summer injuries happen during swimming, surfing, mountain biking, road and trail cycling, gym and fitness activities, as well as DIY and household slips or falls, farming and gardening. Surf Life Saving New Zealand eastern region lifesaving manager Chaz Gibbons-Campbell says the most serious injuries lifeguards deal with are spinal injuries. ACC injury prevention leader James Whitaker says most summer injuries are predictable and preventable.

People hold signs outside the Trump tower in New York as they participate in a protest organised by Rise and Resist against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement activities and the US intervention in Venezuela. Photo / Timothy A. Clary, AFPPeople hold signs outside the Trump tower in New York as they participate in a protest organised by Rise and Resist against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement activities and the US intervention in Venezuela. Photo / Timothy A. Clary, AFPUnited States Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem today accused Democrats of encouraging violence against immigration officers, as anger festered over the killing of a woman by a federal agent in Minneapolis. “They’ve inflamed the public. They’ve encouraged the kind of destruction and violence that we’ve seen in Minneapolis the last several days.”

Jimenez, whose full name is Yeison Orlando Jimenez Galeano, was one of the most well-known pop stars in Colombia, producing eight albums in a 25-year career. The artist had recently revealed his chilling dreams about dying in a plane crash, The New York Post reported. “I dreamt three times that we were going to have a plane crash and that I had to tell the pilot to turn around. And in one of the dreams, I dreamt that we had died and that we were on the news. “The Civil Aeronautics Authority deeply regrets the accident that occurred in Paipa, Boyaca, in which six occupants of the N325FA aircraft died, including the artist Yeison Jimenez.

A seven-year community-led project to restore the Akaroa Recreation Ground courts is finally nearing completion. Banks Peninsula Sport and Recreation secretary Jan Whitehead said it was incredible to be standing on the first refurbished court last month. Photo: Banks Peninsula Sports & Recreation / EJCrew Photography / Facebook"You go down there and all three courts are fully booked, fully utilised at times. After years of wear and tear, the tennis courts had become dangerous and unusable for casual sports. Photo: SuppliedEstablished in about 1930, the Akaroa Recreation Ground had suffered decades of neglect.

Protesters gather as vehicles burn, amid evolving anti-government unrest, in Tehran, Iran, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. An Israeli military official said the protests were an internal Iranian matter, but Israel's military was monitoring developments and was ready to respond "with power if need be". Israel and Iran fought a 12-day war in June last year, which the United States briefly joined by attacking key nuclear installations. Alan Eyre, a former US diplomat and Iran expert, thought it unlikely the protests would topple the establishment. Iranian state TV broadcast funeral processions in western cities such as Gachsaran and Yasuj for security personnel killed in protests.

A Canadian national caught with child abuse images and videos has been sentenced to 10 months' home detention before being deported. The judge said his then-partner found a deleted folder containing a video of child exploitation material on his laptop and questioned him about it last March. Kuyten was arrested and his devices were seized with a search uncovering 2680 images and 357 videos that were identified as objectionable. Kuyten previously admitted to buying and saving two separate packages of child exploitation material about a year prior, but denied looking at every video or image. She also ordered that the devices and child abuse material were destroyed.

Iranians gather while blocking a street during a protest in Tehran, Iran on January 9, 2026. In the past, Iranian security forces have shot protesters in the eyes with metal pellets and rubber bullets. By Friday, other human rights groups said that security forces had already killed dozens. Radan also acknowledged deaths but implied that they were at the hands of coordinated agitators rather than security forces. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a government meeting that Israel is “closely monitoring” the events unfolding in Iran.

A firefighter was flown to hospital after a blaze in North Canterbury in searing temperatures. Crews from the Waiau, Culverden, Lyford, Hanmer VRFF, Hawarden, Wigram, Hurunui, Christchurch City, Canterbury High Country, and Pines Beach stations were called to the blaze. The sweltering temperatures and high winds kept emergency services on alert. Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue confirmed a firefighter was taken to Christchurch hospital from the scene of the fire. A Fire and Emergency (FENZ) spokesperson said 17 fire engines and several helicopters were sent to the scene.

The court heard that the young pair had a positive, well-supported background, which included a Year 13 education. ‘Knives held to throats as threats made’It was unclear exactly how many people stormed the house that early morning. Two victims were sleeping, but three were awake and spotted the group outside. Judge Kim Saunders said it was “easy to forget the sheer terror that was inflicted on the victims” that night. “While you, Noble, agreed to pay reparation, I’m not going to make an order for it, and the reason I’m not going to is because you are going to be sent to prison.

Moeaia Tuai will be sentenced next month for enslaving a young woman who he forced to work and sexually abused. Slavemaster Moeaia Tuai is a Samoan chief or matai, who took possession of his victims' lives and raped one victim, who had been forced to pay him her wages for four years. At the 63-year-old's trial, his own diaries were used to document the hours the young woman worked, her pay and when she was punished with beatings. The young male victim dreamt of finishing school, before he was put to work for 50 to 60 hours a week. She was sentenced to more than 10 years' imprisonment for dealing in slaves and dealing in a person under 18 for sexual exploitation, while Lata's partner Avneesh Sehgal sentenced to four years and eight months in prison for his part in the offending.

Photo: Supplied/Whakatipu Wildlife TrustA restored wetland on the edge of Queenstown is drawing rare native wildlife back to an area once dry and barren, but conservationists say roaming pet cats could undo years of community-led work. Just after a rare and elusive bird species was spotted at the Shotover Wetland, the Whakatipu Wildlife Trust said trail cameras detected 44 cats over three weeks. "Fancy breeds, long hairs, ragdolls with collars - you could tell they were pet cats. However, pet cats roaming near towns could complicate trapping efforts, Harding-Shaw said. Whakatipu Wildlife Trust asked Queenstown Lakes District Council to make microchipping and desexing mandatory, partly because some feral cat traps switched off, if they detected a microchipped pet cat.

Rising from a corner dairyFamily connections and community links run deep at Night ’n Day. Alan and Hamish Garrick outside their Kawarau Night 'n Day store, near Queenstown. The grocery challenges have meant some Night ’n Day stores lost the ability to hold liquor licences. They value their time a lot more.”Sukhwinder Singh and Manjit Kaur own two Night 'n Day stores, at Mt Maunganui and Rotorua. It has not stopped yet.”Disclaimer: Night ’n Day recently sponsored the NZ Herald’s Great NZ Road Trip project.

A week ago, Trump stated that “Cuba is ready to fall”, noting that the island’s economic crisis was worsening and that it would be difficult for Havana to “hold out” without receiving heavily subsidised Venezuelan oil. Earlier on Sunday, the President reposted a message suggesting US Secretary of State Marco Rubio – a child of Cuban immigrants – could become the President of Cuba. Trump shared that post with the comment: “Sounds good to me!”In a separate message soon afterwards, Trump said that “Cuba lived, for many years, on large amounts of OIL and MONEY from Venezuela. Some Republican US lawmakers on Sunday lauded Trump for his aggressive comments on Cuba, including Mario Diaz-Balart, a US congressman from Florida. “The tyranny in Cuba will not survive the second term of President Trump, and Cuba will finally be free after decades of misery, tragedy, and pain.”-Agence France-Presse

More heat forecast today, with showersMetService forecaster Samkelo Magwala told the Herald temperatures were forecast to remain on the hotter side today, particularly in the North Island. “Heat alerts have been issued for most parts in the east and for the north of the North Island,” he said. Magwala said a front across the top of the South Island on Sunday would move towards the bottom of the North Island last night. SH1 WAIOURU TO RANGIPO (DESERT ROAD) - STRONG WINDS - 6:05AMThere is currently a strong wind warning in place along this route. pic.twitter.com/1vt2TsKRiL — NZ Transport Agency - Central North Island (@nztacni) January 11, 2026Magwala said the top half of the North Island would remain mainly fine today, apart from one or two showers in Northland for the afternoon.