7 February 2005
Brutal Double Murder Victim’s Brother Breaks Silence
In a no-holds-barred account, author Owen Scott exposes the sensationalism surrounding the brutal double murder of his
brother, Red Cross Director-General John Scott and his partner Greg Scrivener in Fiji, July 2001. Deep Beyond the Reef,
exposes the scandalous aftermath of a case fuelled by media innuendo.
At the time, misleading headlines such as ‘It’s cocaine, it’s heroin’ appeared in local Fiji papers, creating a frenzy
embraced by the New Zealand media. Coverage included damning reportage (particularly by current affairs programmes) such
as allegations of drugging, possession of pornographic material, and Class A drug consumption.
Family members of Scrivener and Scott spoke openly with media at the time of the murders. The reporting, described by
Owen Scott as ‘distressingly unbalanced’ presented a view of Scott and Scrivener ‘that was very unfair and inaccurate’
leading to a formal complaint made to the Broadcasting Standards Authority. “Life in Fiji is oiled by gossip and rumour”
says Scott ‘What I didn’t expect was that the New Zealand media would so passively swallow the information they
received.”
The book also depicts the history and culture of Fiji, a land many New Zealanders visit but few truly know as well as
the author, a fourth generation white Fijian and son of one of that country’s most prominent legal figures.
But it is the closing of the book that will surprise many readers, who may have stopped following the story before the
verdict and the full, bizarre truth emerged.
Deep Beyond the Reef by Owen Scott is published by Penguin Books 6th February 2005.
ENDS