Bailey Junior Kurariki

Who is Bailey Junior Kurariki?

Bailey Junior Kurariki is New Zealand's youngest convicted killer. He was convicted of the manslaughter of pizza delivery man Michael Choy in Papakura in September 2001, when he was just 12 years and 252 days old the day Choy died.

At the time of Choy's death Kurariki was in the custody of Child, Youth and Family rather than his mother Lorraine West but had absconded, he had been in trouble since the age of five and had not been to school for more than a year.

In the days following the death of Choy, Kurariki was interviewed by police and reportedly confessed to the killings, but due to a procedural error on the part of the police the Court of Appeal ruled the results of the interview could not be presented to the jury.

Choy's stepfather Ken Croskery became active in the Sensible Sentencing Trust, a lobby group campaigning for longer sentences. After his death, 10 years later, his family claim he died of a broken heart.

He reportedly was "born-again" while in prison, and was released on parole on May 5, 2008 but has been in trouble with the courts since and has connections to the Killer Beez gang. There has also been contention about the nature of evidence needed to recall him to jail for breaching parole