Christchurch Man Admits Double Murder Six Years After Honeymoon Killing

A Christchurch man who killed his wife six years ago has pleaded guilty to a second set of killings. Rodney Fallowfield, 58, appeared in the High Court at Christchurch on Thursday, October 29, and admitted murdering two men and wounding two others during an incident at a Phillipstown property on October 10.

Fallowfield entered guilty pleas to murdering Glen Allan Tukaki and Nigel John Robinson. He also admitted charges of wounding with reckless disregard and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. Tukaki was the former president of the Devils Henchmen Motorcycle Club's Christchurch chapter.

His court appearance follows a manslaughter case from earlier in his life. Fallowfield was jailed in October 2021 after a jury found him not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter in the killing of his wife, Shirley Reedy, while the couple were on their honeymoon. He received a sentence of four years and three months.

The Parole Board released him in September 2023, roughly one year before his statutory release date. The Board noted he had been meeting with a psychologist for about three months at the time of the hearing. A relative of Reedy's told the Board they had forgiven Fallowfield but wanted to understand why the killing happened, not just the facts of the case.

Fallowfield answered that question for the Board. "He said there are no words he can say that will alleviate the distress he has caused and it will also haunt him for the rest of his life what he has done," the Board recorded, adding that his expressions of regret and apologies were viewed as genuine. He told the Board the sessions with the psychologist had been good for him and that he had learned what he could do in the future to "remove himself from any kind of highly stressful situation." He also said he wanted to find housing and employment.

A Principal Corrections Officer gave Fallowfield an "excellent report" at the hearing. The Board ruled that he would be released on parole, stating it considered him no longer an undue risk given the work he had done in prison, his presentation at the hearing, his future planning, and the support available to him in the community. The Board noted he was considered low risk of re-offending. Fallowfield remained subject to several special conditions set to last six months past his sentence date.