Bio

David Wayne Tamihere was born in 1954 in New Zealand. He grew up in a challenging environment. Details about his early life are limited, but it is known that he had a troubled upbringing. By the time he was a teenager, he was involved in criminal activities.

In 1972, when he was 18 years old, Tamihere committed his first known violent crime. He killed 23-year-old Mary Barcham, an Auckland stripper. He struck her on the head with a rifle. This act led to his first conviction for manslaughter. He was sentenced to serve time in prison for this crime.

After being released, Tamihere struggled with his behavior. In the 1980s, he faced additional legal troubles, including convictions for sexual assault and assault against women. In 1985, he assaulted a 62-year-old woman in her home.

Tamihere was also known to have issues with substance abuse, particularly alcohol. His troubles with the law continued over the years, leading him to a life filled with violent crime and legal consequences. In 1986, he was released on bail but failed to appear in court, becoming a fugitive for a period.

Murder Story

David Wayne Tamihere was convicted of multiple murders. In 1972, when he was 18, he killed 23-year-old Mary Barcham, a stripper, by hitting her on the head with a rifle. He was sentenced for this crime, which set the stage for his later offenses.

Many years later, in 1989, Tamihere was involved in the deaths of Swedish tourists Sven Urban Höglin and Heidi Birgitta Paakkonen, both aged 23 and 21 respectively. They went missing while tramping in the Coromandel Peninsula of New Zealand. A large search operation was conducted, but they could not be found at that time.

In October 1990, Tamihere was arrested and put on trial for the double murder. During the trial, witnesses claimed he had confessed to them. Some hikers also recognized him as the person seen with a woman believed to be Paakkonen. Despite no bodies being found, the jury found him guilty of murder and theft in December 1990.

Almost a year later, Urban Höglin's body was discovered, but Heidi Paakkonen's body remains unfound. This raised doubts about the initial evidence against Tamihere. He was sentenced to life imprisonment with a 10-year non-parole period.

Tamihere appealed his conviction multiple times throughout the 1990s, but all of his appeals were unsuccessful. He continued to maintain his innocence in the case of both murders.

Finally, on November 15, 2010, after serving 20 years, Tamihere was released on parole. His release came after he participated in treatment programs while in prison, but many questions and concerns remained around the unresolved case and the families of his victims.