(A South Westland farmer, who allowed 1080 to be loaded into helicopters recently on his land, deliberately ran down a protestor on the road. Unfortunately some anti-1080 protestors later made a nuisance of themselves at the Greymouth Police Station. Carol Sawyer fills in the detail of what happened and gives her thoughts on the follow up.)
Attack with his vehicle
Neighbour poisoning neighbour….nice !
“Farmer Jon Sullivan”, (who is allowing one of the biggest 1080 poison drops ever on the West Coast to be loaded from his land ), “has a reputation for being a loudmouth and a bully” says Hari Hari dairy farmer Lindsay Molloy.
Here he ploughs into Hikoi walker Phil Paterson of Hari Hari. Phil was merely videoing the aerial preferred operation from the edge of SH6 in Hari Hari, South Westland.
https://www.facebook.com/hikoiofapoisonednation/videos/838138726376905/
First-hand account of the vicious assault
Mary Molloy was there and reports:
“Phil Paterson has been run over on the side of the road by farmer Jon Sullivan, who knocked him down 4WD and ran over his legs. He was shaken up and taken away in an ambulance Police and security were chatty but have now clammed up. Marlborough Helicopters Ltd and Central South Island Helicopters Ltd in action – very hard to get close, trespass notices like lolly papers. Opsec Solutions, mix of people from nice to bloody arsewipe, ignorant ones”
The preferred baits were dropped on Saturday August 4 2018.
This is the Karnbah- Poerua 1080 drop – a big one.
The police are not the enemy
Nothing is to be gained by carrying on like this and abusing the police and banging on doors at the Greymouth Police Station.
All it does is lose public sympathy – which actually the anti-1080 movement had in droves following the apparently deliberate attack on Phil Paterson by an angry farmer on a quad bike in the Hari Hari, South Westland, area the other day.
We are all angry about our land being poisoned, but I think it pays not to act in counterproductive ways.
The police are not our enemy – they are a government dept and they have to do as they are told from on high but, for my part, I try to remember that many policemen, especially in rural areas, are hunters and do not like 1080 either. Banging on their door and calling them “gutless” and “corrupt militia” is very definitely not a good idea.
An important point which no-one seems to know the answer to this question:
HAS THAT FARMER, JON SULLIVAN, BEEN CHARGED YET ?!
Because he must be! We are not going to let this go away. Jon Sullivan appears in the above video to aim DIRECTLY for Phil Paterson. He fails to ascertain if Phil is injured after he knocks him over and drives over his foot.
The police, a nurse and an ambulance were later brought to the scene, and Phil was transported to Grey Hospital.
It was State Highway 6 and the quad bike had no licence plate, no indicator light, dogs were unsecured on the back, and no seatbelts were worn.
Attacks on public in public places cannot be allowed to happen.
This seemed a deliberate attack on the public in a public place and as such should be prosecuted to give a warning to others that actions like this will not be tolerated.