Granddad's P grief prompts reward

ROBERT KITCHIN/The Dominion Post

WANTING RESULTS: Michael Jacomb has put up a bounty of $25,000 for information leading to the arrest of the Kahui twins' killer.

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Upper Hutt millionaire Michael Jacomb has a personal reason for offering $25,000 to bring the Kahui twins' murderer to justice.

He is raising his grandchildren after his daughter's life was "ruined" by methamphetamine, or P. He believes drugs may have affected the family of three-month-old twins Chris and Cru Kahui, who died in 2006. The boys' mother, Macsyna King, admitted during a murder trial of her partner, Chris Kahui, that she had used P. Mr Kahui, was acquitted.

Mr Jacomb's contribution brings the total reward for information that will solve the double-murder to $50,000 after Family First's initial contribution last month.

But the offer will last only for three months.

After the twins' deaths in 2006, police had a lot of trouble getting information out of the children's family – dubbed the "tight 12".

Nobody else has been charged and police have said fresh information would be needed to restart the investigation.

Mr Jacomb, in his 50s, said yesterday there was too much child neglect and a lot of it was linked to drugs. He and his wife were raising their grandson, 14, and granddaughter, 8, after their mother fell in with gangs and became addicted to P.

"[The Kahui case] has had a big impact on me. We have our grandchildren, probably for the same reasons that many other grandparents have – because of drugs."

"[My daughter] was a lovely girl and P ruined her life. I've been told in no uncertain terms that P was well involved in what happened to the Kahui twins."

He hoped the bigger sum would crack the "tight 12" open. "That household was getting over $2000 from the welfare system every week.

"There is a drug problem there and for $50,000 they can buy a lot of drugs. "We just need the person that knows a bit more to get into cahoots with one or two of the others and nail the one who has to go away for it. But they better get in quick."

Mr Jacomb said he had been lucky in life and the reward was a chance to stand up and be counted.

"We need a result with this case."

In 1975 he started Upper Hutt industrial generator company Power Hire – which did a roaring trade during the 1998 Auckland power crisis – before selling it to Hirequip for more than $11 million.

In 2005 he bought Upper Hutt's old RSA building without even looking at the premises.

"I liked the [regulars] in there. They still drink there and good on them, everyone has a bit of fun. I didn't buy it to make money, I just bought it to help some guys out."

- © Fairfax NZ News