Photo: RNZ / Rebekah Parsons-King
There were angry scenes and a heavy police presence at the High Court at New Plymouth today where two men and a teenager involved in a gang-related murder made appearances.
Rei Marshall, 23, a young father was stabbed to death in August.
Turanganui John Ormsby-Turner, 26, the president of the West Coast Mongrel Mob chapter, admitted killing Rei Marshall, a member of the rival gang Uru Taha.
His plea was a cue for a fracas between supporters of the two men who had to be separated.
A 16 year old, who appeared via audio-visual-link, pleaded guilty to wounding with intent and being an accessory to murder after the fact, in a more subdued appearance.
But trouble kicked off again when Hamiora Laupama, 25, was sentenced to five months home detention for being an accessory after the fact.
As the sentence was read Marshall's father called out "Bullshit. Shut the f... up. He killed my f...... son" while his brother screamed "Judas" as supporters of each man traded insults before being separated by court security and police.
The court heard that on the evening of 3 August Laupama had gone to an address on South Road, Blagdon with Ormsby-Turner and another man to pick up the victim's brother.
All four were members of the Mongrel Mob while Rei Marshall was a member of Uru Taha.
According to the summary of facts, Laupama didn't think that there would be problem because they had met with Rei Marshall before and there had been no trouble.
But later Laupama and Rei Marshall exchanged words and the victim aimed a punch at Laupama but missed.
The judge outlined what happened next.
"TJ Ormsby-Turner moved from behind the victim and stabbed the victim once in the torso with a large black hunting knife. The other person present then attacked the victim with a claw hammer."
Rei Marshall's brother stopped the attack and carried him to a car which the victim's partner drove to Taranaki Base Hospital where he was pronouced dead.
Ormsby-Turner then instructed Laupama and the other man "to get rid of their own car and several items including their clothes and the knife".
The knife was thrown into the Te Henui Stream at the East End Reserve and their clothes burned.
On 8 August, Ormsby-Turner, Laupama and the other man were arrested and taken to the New Plymouth police station.
Police subsequently executed a number of search warrants and recovered items related to the murder including the knife. Charges followed soon after.
Earlier, Rei Marshall's sister fought back tears while reading out a victim impact statement on behalf of his family.
"Hamiora Laupama you are a coward," she told the defendant. "We know had the tables been turned Rei would've put himself in harm's way to protect someone we now know would not have done the same. Hamiora you may not have taken my brother's life but you undoubtedly contributed to his murder."
She said her extended family had twice taken in Laupama when he needed help and this was how he repaid them.
"The aroha our family has shown you should have far outweighed the loyalty to a gang you had known not even a quarter of the time you had been involved with my brother and his whānau.
"Our parents had to lay their baby to rest. We our brother and our niece her father. We weren't allowed to kiss him or hold his hand in the hospital after he passed because of the violent way it had happened.
"His father has lost his eldest son, his legacy all the hopes he had for his future. His sisters and brothers have lost one of their best friends whose warm smile and goofy laugh, tight embrace and big shoulders were always there when we needed them most.
"Rei's daughter will grow up without knowing the love of a man who treasured her more than anything."
The Crown sought a starting point of two years jail for Laupama while acknowledging there would be deductions including for his early guilty plea which would bring a sentence of home detention into play.
Defence Lawyer Julian Hannam had no issue with the Crown's position and read out a statement from Laupama.
"I wish I wasn't there and had stayed home. I wish I did more than stand there frozen in shock. Nothing like this was meant to happen. I'm gonna do what I can to make it right, but I know nothing I can do will bring him back," the statement said.
"'I have never had any ill will against the whānau. I hope that one day you can forgive me for what I did."
Ormsby-Turner will be sentenced on 6 March.
The teenager was remanded on bail.
