Inside prison that houses NZ’s worst criminals and the new home of terror accused Brenton Tarrant

It’s a prison the inmates have called “insane” where only the worst are locked away. It’s now the new home of accused terrorist Brenton Tarrant.

The prison accused Australian terrorist Brenton Tarrant is being held is reserved for the most “complex, volatile and dangerous” men - an environment one inmate labelled as “insane”.

Auckland Prison at Paremoremo, known as “Parry”, was recently given a $300m overhaul that was due to bring it up to modern standards and make a safer environment for staff and inmates.

Brenton Tarrant the man accused of the Christchurch terror attack that killed 50 and wounded dozens more, is believed to have been flown here from the South Island after he appeared in court on Saturday.

He has been charged with murder and terrorism charges may also be laid.

The 28-year-old will be kept under 24/7 watch and completely segregated from other inmates with no visitors allowed. He has also been denied access to the internet, television, newspapers and radio.

That means he has been denied seeing the worldwide coverage his crimes have caused.

Purpose-built cells in the prison, in Auckland’s west, are designed to withstand a 16-hour continual “attack” and windows have three layers of security.

Inside $300m Auckland Prison rebuild where Brenton Tarrant is housed. Picture: NZ Herald

The prison boasts heartbeat detectors, security doors that unlock with a fingerprint scanner and an intimidating five-layered fence.

A huge emphasis was placed on rehabilitation and trying to prevent inmates re-offending when they were released - but for many of those locked behind its thick, secure walls there will be no second chance.

New Zealand’s Corrections agency confirmed Tarrant was being managed in accordance with the law.

“He is being managed in accordance with the provisions set out in the Corrections Act 2004 and our international obligations for the treatment of prisoners. At this time he has no access to television, radio or newspapers and no approved visitors.”

Despite its rebuild, there has been a continued flow of violence.

In the first three months since inmates moved in during October 2018, there have been two attacks that have injured five guards. One incident last December saw a pack of inmates launch a furious assault on corrections officers.

At the time, the prison guards union organiser Beven Hanlon blamed the violence on the push to try and give inmates more time out of their cells, some could only expect two or three hours out of their cell a day.

“Five hours a day, they’re hanging out in bunches of four or five, working out what mischief they can get up to and how they can assault people. These days, guys run competitions to see how many staff they can assault in a month,” Mr Hanlon told Stuff.

A young girl writes a message on the ground with chalk next to flowers and tributes near Al Noor mosque. picture: Getty Images

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told NZ Parliament she would never say the Christchurch attacker’s name.

It’s believed procedures changed after the prisoners came up with a cunning plan to beat security when they realised one of the doors in the unit opened wider than the others, allowing more than one person through at a time.

As a result, they rushed the staff on duty.

The new wing for maximum security prisoners, where Tarrant will be held, houses 260 inmates. Each has their own cell that is 3.1m wide by 2.9m deep. There is a toilet and shower behind a partial privacy wall, along with a stainless steel wash basin, reports The New Zealand Herald.

There is a bed and a small desk that sit under a dome ceiling mirror that gives guards line of sight. There is a window to the outside world - but inmates won’t see much past three layers of security.

All fixtures are anti-ligature and horizontal cell window bars are behind high-security glass, able to withstand a 16-hour continual “attack”. The beds are able to withstand constant 200kg weight battering and are fixed, heavy-duty steel that measure 2m x 1m.

Ground level and roof louvres are designed to quickly evacuate smoke.

All the measure are designed so any disorder is kept to a minimum and staff are not forced to enter cells unless they absolutely have to.

In other words, the inmates can go as crazy as they like but they won’t get out.

Students embrace at a floral tribute at the Botanical Gardens in Christchurch, New Zealand. Picture: AP

A former inmate last year wrote he “lived among the madness” of Auckland Prison.

“Concerned with Parry’s insane environment, I have closely followed the plans for its replacement. And like many staff and prisoners, I’m not convinced its current operation will see the new prison sufficiently address the issues plaguing the old one,” cop killer Daniel Luff told Bauer Media.

The maximum security wing has been designed so there is only one entry point and there is greater separation internally between cells and different units.

In a Herald interview last year, Andy Langley, Auckland Prison director, spoke of the role technology was playing.

“This is a darn sight more secure in terms of the technology - the ability to keep prisoners separated from each other. That’s one of the biggest challenges in maximum security. We have some very dangerous individuals that are dangerous to each other and staff and you have to keep moving between floors.”

A woman sits quietly across the road from the Masjid Al Noor mosque where worshippers were massacred last Friday.

It is a prison made for the 21st century.

“Staff will be able to use biometrics,” he said, describing technology which gives security access via fingerprint scanners.

“In the gate house, we have heartbeat detection. If a prisoner tried to hide by clinging to a vehicle, we would remove all the staff out of the area by the gatehouse and then the heartbeat monitor would be turned on and you would be able to detect someone via their heart.”

News of Tarrant’s move to Auckland Prison came on the same day New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern vowed to never utter his name.

“He sought many things from his act of terror, but one was notoriety - and that is why you will never hear me mention his name”, said Ms Ardern.

“We in New Zealand will give him nothing - not even his name,” she told Parliament.

There are concerns that the suspect - believed to be behind a lengthy “manifesto” published before the attack - could use his court appearances to publicise far-right views.

Later in her address to the House of Representatives, Ms Ardern indicated social media companies could face action - potentially putting New Zealand, and in particular its popular leader, on a collision course with the likes of Facebook and YouTube.

She told MPs she would examine what could be done “on the international stage and in unison with our partners” - hinting she was considering building an international coalition if she takes on the companies.

“We cannot simply sit back and accept these platforms exist and what is said on them is not the responsibility of the place where they are published - they are the publisher, not just the postman.”

“There cannot be a case of all profit, no responsibility,” warned Ms Ardern.

Intelligence agencies around the world are examining how Tarrant came to be so radicalised - and what his links to others are - but one expert believed his hate-filled manifesto was designed to amplify propaganda.

Benjamin Decker is a research fellow at the Shorenstein Centre at Harvard Kennedy School in Boston, investigating online radicalisation of mass shooters and jihadists.

He told the ABC both Tarrant and IS recruiters in Syria employed social media to inspire lone-wolf attacks.

“My first thought was that this is the white nationalist response to ISIS — he specifically creates a number of search areas for readers of his content to look further,” he said.

If Ms Ardern is successful in her mission to force social media to clean up their act, the Christchurch mosque killer’s evil crimes might have a consequence he could never have dreamt of.

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