Roast Busters ringleader Joseph Parker has opened up in an exclusive interview with Newshub, saying he's trying to make amends.
Newshub revealed the accused sex predators' actions in 2013, which included group sex with drunk, underage teens. Videos the group took showed them unashamedly proud of their exploits, and not afraid to tell all.
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"A true roast is where you know you are going there intentionally to roast this female," one young man said in a video.
"We don't choose a roast, the roast chooses us. We have girls hitting us up to 'hang out with us'. They know what we're like; they know what they're in for."
Police had already been investigating the group for about two years, but the investigation was put on hold in 2014 with none of the group charged with any crimes - despite at least five girls making formal statements.
"I just kept blacking out 'cause I had drunken too much," one underage girl told Newshub in 2013.
"You could say I got raped. I had sex with three guys at one time."
Now, Mr Parker says he's changed "mentally and spiritually" and wants to "live a life that has value to others".
"I understand I put them through a lot of hurt and pain; I can only try to understand the hurt they have been put through but I don't think I will fully understand because I am not them," he told Newshub.
"By doing this interview, I understand some of the people who I've hurt will be exposed to the past again... but I hope they can see there is a change in my heart and they can see I am trying to make amends and make it better."
However Mr Parker maintains while the Roast Busters were not saints, "we were not the monsters people thought we were, and we did not do a lot of things people thought we did".
Newshub has gone to extensive efforts to contact as many of the Roast Busters' victims as possible, to alert them the former ringleader was speaking out about the damage he caused.
Watch the video for the full first part of Newshub's interview with Parker.
Where to find help and support:
Anyone affected by sexual harm can contact Safe to talk. It's for survivors, concerned whānau and people who have harmed others or who may be thinking about harming others.
- Safe to talk is available 24 hours, seven days a week by:
- Calling: 0800 044 334
- Texting: 4334
- Emailing: support@safetotalk.nz
- Live webchat on www.safetotalk.nz that also has a range of great resources and information about sexual harm.
Newshub.
