January 29 next year will mark the seventh anniversary of the tragic death of Gore preschooler Lachie Jones. Who was found dead in the town’s sewage pond. Thirteen days earlier – January 16, 2026 – is a date his dad Paul Jones has marked in his diary. That’s the deadline given to the police to investigate – for the third time. The circumstances surrounding Lachie’s death and report back to Coroner Alexander Ho. Paul hopes it’s when he’ll finally get answers about what happened to Lachie, his only child.
“I’m pleased it’s going to be reinvestigated, but we’re back to square one,” he says.
“The police should have done their job properly in the first place.”
A father’s fight for answers
Paul pushed for an inquest into Lachie’s 2019 death after being dissatisfied with the two police investigations. Which concluded the three-year-old accidentally drowned after escaping from his house and running to the oxidation ponds 1.2 kilometres away.
‘The police should have done their job properly in the first place’
Paul, 54, believes his son wouldn’t have travelled that distance in bare feet and a soiled nappy. Then gone over a fence and across rough terrain that didn’t leave any marks on his skin, to a place he didn’t know existed. Lachie was found face up and there was no water in his lungs, which has helped to convince Paul that foul play was involved.
Findings that sparked a fresh investigation
Coroner Ho held an inquest into Lachie’s death last year and released his findings in June. He said the cause of death could not be determined and he wasn’t satisfied the evidence backed up the police conclusion of accidental drowning. He directed police to look into the case again, describing Southland Police’s handling of the previous investigations as a “shambles”.
North Island police will reinvestigate Lachie’s death, which Paul is pleased about. But the courier driver is disappointed Coroner Ho thought the most likely scenario was that Lachie got to the ponds under his own steam.
Paul demands answers
“Nothing will ever convince me of that,” he says.
Coroner Ho described some of the evidence given by Lachie’s mum Michelle Officer (Paul’s ex) and his half-brother Jonathan Scott. Who were at home with Lachie the day he died, as inconsistent, and said he was “not convinced we have heard the entire truth”.
However, he also said Michelle did not cause Lachie “direct harm in a manner materially contributory to death” and it was not possible to find whether a third party was involved. Calling for a reinvestigation did not mean he thought any individuals were complicit in or responsible for Lachie’s death, he said.
Unanswered questions
Paul doesn’t agree with some of the coroner’s findings, including his belief that Lachie could have reached the road to the ponds in the brief period his mother said he was out of her sight by running at
12 km/h.
“That’s a ridiculous speed for a three-year-old,” insists Paul.
“Plus he was wearing a police hat that was too big and would’ve fallen off. He’d have had to keep stopping to pick it up.”
The mystery of the back door
One of the matters the coroner said warranted further investigation was how Lachie got out of his house. Michelle testified that he disappeared while she was in Jonathan’s room helping him during a weight-lifting session.
She said when she went back to the kitchen, she got a drink from the fridge, then looked out the window to see a small boy on the street. When she checked the living room and saw Lachie was gone, she went after him.
Michelle’s version of events
According to Michelle’s evidence, she caught up with him and they called in to say hello to a neighbour – who never saw Lachie. He then ran away again and she was unable to find him. Two hours later, a police dog handler located his body in the pond.
In his findings, Coroner Ho said Lachie was too small to reach the handle on the back door, but could have opened it by pulling on a bolt at the bottom of it. Paul, who knows the house well, questions how, if Lachie got out that way, he then managed to close the door behind him.
“The door must have been shut because [Michelle] wouldn’t have been able to open the fridge, it would have been blocked by the back door. And she would have noticed straightaway if it was open. But Lachie couldn’t shut it, he couldn’t reach the handle. It doesn’t make sense.”
That’s one of many things that don’t add up to Paul and his friend Karen McGuire. Who has been supporting his battle to learn what happened that night.
“There are so many questions and Paul’s had to fight for answers for six years,” says Karen, 52.
“Everyone says good on him for fighting. But he doesn’t have a choice. He’s lost his son and he wants to know the truth.”
