Fifty year old Ōmaiō man Jason Butler was last seen heading into the Raukūmera ranges with a Ngā Whenua Rāhui contractor on Saturday 23 October 2021.

 

Self-discharged from Whakatāne hospital only two weeks earlier against the wishes of his whānau, Jason was completely unprepared for what was supposed to be an overnight work trial.

 

Taken onto a track experts describe as "challenging" and "dangerous", Jason had no proper tramping gear, no food or safety equipment and having never been there before, no knowledge of the area.

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Jason has never come home from that trip.

 

Jason was reported missing four days after he was last seen.

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Police Land Search & Rescue teams searched the area on and off for eleven days.

 

Representatives of Jason's iwi, hapū and extended whānau searched for a total of thirty-nine days.

 

After dedicated searches were officially called off, whānau who work in the same area continue to search at every opportunity, and still do now.

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Aside from two small articles of clothing, no other trace of Jason has ever been found.

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Jason had a tough life. He made mistakes and he struggled.

He faced challenges, difficulty and pain.

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Living in Australia, Jason's elderly parents and sister travelled back to Aotearoa frequently to support Jason, but when the border closed during the pandemic they were unable to return home, and Jason's health deteriorated.

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On the last occasions they spoke, Jason's sister Huia knew his condition was the worst it had ever been.

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Over one year since Jason was last seen, his whānau want to know what happened to their son, brother, father, uncle, koro and cousin.

 

They want to know where he is, so they can bring him home and if required, lay him to rest.

 

If you have information about Jason or his disappearance, you can use this form to let his whānau know. Please help us get Justice4Jason.

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THANK YOU

 

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