| Ngatai Lynette Manning | |
|---|---|
One of the early photos released of Mallory throughout the investigation. |
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| Born | Ngatai Lynette Manning 1981 |
| Died | December 18, 2008 (age 27) Avonside, Christchurch, New Zealand |
| Cause of death | Knife wounds, strangling, beaten with metal pole[1] |
| Nationality | Māori |
| Other names | Mallory |
| Occupation | Prostitute |
| Known for | Murder victim |
| Home town | Christchurch |
Ngatai Lynette Manning (also known as Mallory Manning) was murdered in Christchurch, New Zealand on 18 December 2008. It remains unsolved. Manning was picked up from her inner city, Manchester Street corner that she worked on as a prostitute, was taken to a property in Avonside and brutally killed by stabbing, strangling and assault with a metal pole. Her body was then dumped in the nearby Avon River and found the next morning by a kayaker.
The cases severity and longetivity have lead police to fear of a repeat killer and a reward on information was issued.[2] The case has also been seen so extreme it has gone down as one of New Zealand's most severe unsolved crimes.
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Mallory Manning had been taking drugs since the age of 14 and subsequently had been working as a prostitute since 15. In 1999, she was sentenced to 18 months jail for stabbing a shop assistant with a blood-filled syringe during a robbery.[3]
Manning had given up work as a prostitute due to fears for her life and due to the fact her sister had recently died and she did not want to die young. Manning had been fighting a drug addiction for years but was off the drugs and decided to go back to polytechnic and study art. However Manning's poverty and unemployment made her unable to afford Christmas presents for her family and she decided to return to prostitution for "just one night".[4]
On 18 December 2008 Manning was walking down Blenheim Road and was picked up by a client at 9:17 pm. She was dropped off at her usual corner of Manchester and Peterborough Streets. She was picked up again at 9:30 from this area and dropped back there.[5] Manning then had another client which lasted until 10:20pm. She was then picked up at 10:35 or 10:40. She sent a text message at 10:43 before being driven to Galbraith Avenue in Avonside. She was then strangled, stabbed and beaten with a metal pole before being driven to the Avon River and dumped.[6] It has been suggested that Manning was possibly sexually assaulted although police acknowledged she may have had an unknown client or unregistered sexual partner.[7]
Manning's body was discovered the next morning by a kayaker. Manning's watch had stopped at 11 o'clock, due to water damage. Police suggested they may have found items of interest in the river.[8] The investigation was conducted by 30 officers however it was constantly interrupted due to bad weather and rain.[9] Police confirmed that more than one weapon was behind Manning's death.[10] The police interviewed more than 900 people and learnt of a dark Ford Falcon that may have been involved. They also obtained Manning's client list, receiving a list of 40 people they were eager to speak to.[11] The police took DNA evidence from a carpark that Manning was known to take her clients.[12]
There were numerous people of interest, namely men who lived in Christchurch and regularly used prostitutes.[13] The police dismissed the murder as a robbery gone wrong as her handbag with all her belongings was still over her shoulder when she was discovered.[14] After security footage was examined at the time of Manning's disappearance, it was declared that police were looking for an Indian man who may have been a client of Manning's[15] and a driver of a blue 4 wheel drive.[16]
After talking to another prostitute about the murder, a man was interviewed by police and vital information was recorded.[17] Seed's were found on Manning's cardigan that she was wearing suggesting numerous places the murder could have taken place.[18] In October 2009 a man who had lived with Manning was approached by police to identify a voice that he recognised as highup in the "criminal underworld".[19] Other persons of interest included a man in a singlet with brown curly hair, two men standing by a 4WD and the driver of a white saloon vehicle all located within metres of the location Manning's body was found on the night of her death.[20]
In December 2010 it was announced that the location Manning was murdered had been located due to the seeds found on her body, it was close to where the body had been dumped in a property on Galbraith Avenue in Avonside.[1][6][21] A warehouse at the site was a Mongrel Mob hangout at the time and they were known to work prostitutes however it was not ruled out that the property could have been accessed by others as well.[22] In September 2011 it was announced police had discovered semen on Manning's body that was not matched to any of her partners that night.[7] Despite the fact she was possibly sexually assaulted, the police did not rule out the possibility Manning had an unknown sexual partner or client.[7] It was announced they were focusing the investigation on gang members as a result of the discovery of her death site.[7]
Due to the high profile of the case, several other murder case's were instantly linked however were not related. These included the murder of Vanessa Pickering[23] (who knew Manning personally) and Tisha Lowry's.[24]