Jason Butler Photo: Supplied
The sister of a mentally unwell man who went missing in the bush on a work trial is blaming "a litany failures" from the various agencies who should have kept him safe, and is still looking for answers 18 months later.
In October 2021 Jason Butler was taken into the rugged Raukūmara Ranges in the Bay of Plenty by a DOC contractor on an unapproved, overnight work trial, and has not been seen since.
When the contractor emerged from the bush, they took four days to alert their employer, Ngā Whenua Rāhui, and to report Jason missing to the police.
Only a week and half earlier Jason Butler had discharged himself from Whakatāne Hospital, after being sectioned under the Mental Health Act when he became manic and delusional.
His whānau say he was in the worst mental and physical health of his life. 18 months after he went missing, his sister Huia Mackley is still looking for answers.
She speaks to Kathryn about her disappointment with various agencies involved in Jason's life in his last few weeks.
Huia Mackley and her whānau are fundraising to hire a lawyer for the coronial inquiry.
