Nark

Darcy Te Hira died in 1985 after being bashed in Mt Eden Prison. Fellow inmate Ross Appelgren was convicted of the crime. But was the evidence dodgy? After all, it was supplied by narks.

Contains strong language and violent themes

Written and hosted by Mike Wesley-Smith

On air:

Sundays at 7pm on RNZ National

Black and white grainy image of Ross Appelgren (left hand side) and Darcy Te Hira (right handside) with their faces partially obscured by the end of the image. Prison bars appear behind then, with the word 'Nark' in all caps in white with a black strip behind the words.

Follow this podcast

RSS
Apple PodcastsSpotifyIHeartRadioYouTube Podcasts

Get this podcast straight from the source in the free RNZ app: Apple App Store or Google Play

Podcast details.

Credits

Mike Wesley-Smith

Host and Writer
Liz Garton
Producer
William Saunders
Audio Engineer
Briana Juretich-Greig
Production Coordinator
Tim Watkin
Executive Editor, Audio and Script Editor
Amrita Marks
Graphics

With production support from William Ray, Justin Gregory and Phil Vine.

With audio engineering support from Rangi Powick, Jeremy Ansell, Jeremy Veal, Hamish Webber, Marc Chesterman, Steve Burridge, Alex Harmer and Ben Pierce.

RNZ photographers - Nick Monro and Mark Papalii

Legal advisers - Luke Bodle and Robert Stewart

Some archival audio supplied thanks to Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision and Mediaworks.

See images and more details about the series at www.rnz.co.nz/nark

If you have any information about this case, send an email to nark@rnz.co.nz

AI was used to recreate the voice of Ross Appelgren. The only words used were those he wrote or said during his lifetime.

Awards

Spotify

Best True Crime of 2025

Get in touch

Email us at: nark@rnz.co.nz

Other podcasts
like this one

More podcasts with similar themes or ideas that you might enjoy.

  • Image of Kura Turuwhenua, Brett Graham and Ngahuia Te Awekotuku smiling with te reo Maori word "Tukua" in neon blue behind them.

    TUKUA

    Exploring an intergenerational response to arts and cultural events.

  • Image of a smiling woman with her hands raised in the air in a "praising" style. The words "The Lodge" appear above her hands. Her eyes are covered with a teared page rip across her face and across the image below. There are mountains in the distance behind her. The image is in a purple wash.

    The Lodge

    Award-winning

    Featured in the Apple Podcasts Top New Shows, Top Series and Top Episodes charts for 2025

  • Test reads "The detail" where the dot on the "I" is highlighted.

    The Detail

    Winner of Best Current Affairs Podcast at the 2025 NZ Podcast Awards

  • The words "Black Sheep" are displayed in a vintage font above a black sheep with a creepy red eye.

    Black Sheep

    The shady, controversial & sometimes downright villainous characters of NZ.

  • An illustrated portrait of Peter Ellis that looks distorted by glass. A bold 'CONVICTION' sits on top.

    Conviction

    Who can you believe? Go deep into the Christchurch Civic Creche case.

  • A large open eye in black and white appears between a family photo with the eyes blacked out and an old audio recorder on the left, and the NZ parliament building on the right. Below are documents with stamps and images. Bold text in the centre reads 'The Service'.

    The Service

    At the height of the Cold War laws are bent to breaking point.