Police to review drowning of 3-year-old Lachlan Jones after allegations of foul play

Police will review the drowning of Gore’s little boy, Lachlan Jones, following claims by the boy’s father that foul play may have been responsible for his death.

The death of the “helpful, bright and bubbly” 3-year-old horrified the city last January.
His lifeless body, face up, was discovered by a police search team in one of the Southland city sewage oxidation ponds.

Yesterday, police said they were conducting a review of the case, following shocking new claims from Lachlan’s father, Gore’s courier driver Paul Jones.

Jones spoke to the Otago Daily Times yesterday and said he felt the police had “let down” his son.

He claimed that Gore’s police investigation into his son’s death was perfunctory and had reached conclusions without supporting evidence.

Now she believes her son was taken to the ponds by someone, before his young life came to an end.

On the night of Tuesday, January 29, Jones was not present at the Salford St home where his partner, Michelle Officer, and their son lived, due to a temporary estrangement.

The officer could not be reached by the ODT yesterday for comment.

Jones said that according to eyewitness statements, Lachlan left home sometime between 8:30 p.m. and 9 p.m.

Police records say the young man wore a yellow high-visibility vest and, barefoot, walked or ran the 1.2 km to the rust ponds at the Gore sewer plant, where he drowned.

His body was found by an officer and his police dog at 11.15 pm

Jones said the investigation that followed was “slight and totally inappropriate.”

He said police did not conduct a full forensic examination of the scene and ignored what appeared to be conflicting witness and post-mortem evidence.

This had led him to the conclusion that his son had not suffered on his own.

“There are many things that do not add up.

“The timelines given by [his mother] and other witnesses who spoke to them or saw him that night make no sense, and neither does the physical evidence.

“This is a boy who is supposed to have ran 1.2 km to a place where he had never been before, barefoot on gravel and nettles, climbed through a gate or barbed wire and got into a pond.

“Why were there no marks on his feet or legs, and why weren’t fingerprints taken on the door?

“I think someone took him there.”

Jones said the extent of her involvement in the investigation after her son’s death was a solitary statement given to police.

“I feel totally excluded from the investigation. As far as I am concerned, that statement could well have been thrown away.”

As a result of the incident, WorkSafe has taken the Gore District Council to court, where it faces a fine of up to $ 1.5 million for failing to take “reasonable precautions” to ensure the site is safe.

Following an article published by the Newsroom on Wednesday, the council spoke to the ODT yesterday and said it had “concerns” about the case, leading it to plead not guilty to the charges brought.

In a statement, a council spokeswoman said recent events had raised “interesting and significant questions.”

“The council will follow any developments with interest. We have also had concerns about aspects of this case, which contributed to our decision to plead not guilty to the charges brought by WorkSafe. We cannot expand on those concerns due to the court action.

“This is a difficult time for everyone involved in this tragic incident, and [the situation] it is likely to cause concern within our close-knit community. “

Jones said she still felt the loss of her son just as badly as the nice summer day he disappeared.

“If Lachie had been with me that night, he would still be alive now.

“I have spoken now because [the grief] it’s getting worse every day nothing happens.

“The police have taken away his voice.”