R v Tipiwai - [2022] NZHC 2445

IN THE HIGH COURT OF NEW ZEALAND ROTORUA REGISTRY

I TE KŌTI MATUA O AOTEAROA

TE ROTORUA-NUI-A-KAHUMATAMOMOE ROHE

CRI 2020-063-2105

[2022] NZHC 2445

THE KING

v

BOBBY TIPIWAI

Hearing: 23 September 2022

Appearances:

A McConachy for the Crown

T Braithwaite for the defendant

Date:

23 September 2022

SENTENCING NOTES OF CAMPBELL J

R v TIPIWAI [2022] NZHC 2445 [23 September 2022]

Introduction

[1] Mr Tipiwai, you appear for sentence having pleaded guilty to one charge of kidnapping1 and one charge of participation in an organised criminal group.2 My job today, on behalf of the community, is to impose a sentence on you for those offences in accordance with law.

Offending

[2] A summary of facts was presented to the Court when you pleaded guilty. You accepted that summary of facts. I will sentence you on the basis of those agreed facts, together with any inferences I can draw from them.3

[3] You are one of a group of associates of the Black Power gang, led by Ricky- Lee Dixon. In August 2020, Ms Dixon came to believe that the victim in this matter had stolen methamphetamine from her. She organised a group to kidnap the victim and extort sums of money from the victim’s father. The group kidnapped and severely beat the victim on two separate occasions.

[4] You were involved only in the first kidnapping. On the morning of 12 September 2020, you were with the victim at a Rotorua property. At around 4 am, an unknown associate arrived at the property and dragged the victim from her bed. You were present in the bedroom. You told the victim she had no choice but to go. Initially, the victim fought back, but your associate threatened the victim with a fake gun, which she thought was real.

[5] You then left the property in a car with your associate and the victim. In the car, you told the victim that she needed to call her father and have him bring some money, in order for the victim to stay alive. Your associate said the same thing. You then drove the victim to a property where Ms Dixon and her daughter were.

1      Crimes Act 1961, s 209(a) and 66(1). Maximum penalty: 14 years’ imprisonment.
2      Section 98A. Maximum penalty: 10 years’ imprisonment.
3      R v R [2019] NZCA 135 at [33]; R v Kinghorn [2014] NZCA 168 at [20] and [31]; Pokai v R [2014]
NZCA 356 at [30]–[36]; and R v Apostolakis (1997) 14 CRNZ 492 (CA) at 494.

[6] The victim’s father came to that property. He handed over around $1,500 in cash. Ms Dixon said it was not enough money and sent him away to get more. While he was doing that, the victim was forced to do chores around the house and was not allowed to leave without Ms Dixon’s permission. You were one of several people watching the victim under Ms Dixon’s direction.

[7] The victim’s father returned. He was directed into a bedroom where…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading R v Tipiwai

Details

AGLC: R v Tipiwai [2022] NZHC 2445
Case: [2022] NZHC 2445
Decision Date: 23 September 2022

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the High Court of New Zealand Rotorua Registry, the case of R v Tipiwai was heard on 23 September 2022, concerning the defendant, Bobby Tipiwai, who had pleaded guilty to one charge of kidnapping and one charge of participation in an organised criminal group. The defendant was part of a group associated with the Black Power gang, which had kidnapped a victim and extorted money from her father. The court was tasked with determining an appropriate sentence based on the agreed facts, the impact on the victim, and the principles and purposes of sentencing.

The legal issues included assessing the gravity and culpability of the offending, the impact on the victim, and the appropriate starting point for the sentence considering the relevant features of kidnapping cases. The court considered factors such as the length of detention, extent of premeditation, number of offenders, gang involvement, and level of violence. The court also evaluated mitigating and aggravating factors, including the defendant's personal circumstances and willingness to engage in rehabilitation.

In sentencing, the court imposed a starting point of four years and two months' imprisonment, taking into account the defendant's limited role in the violence and his participation in the group's offending. The court then applied various allowances for the defendant's personal circumstances, late guilty plea, and willingness to engage in rehabilitation, resulting in a final sentence of two years and eleven months' imprisonment to be served concurrently for both charges.

The final orders of the court were that Bobby Tipiwai be sentenced to two years and eleven months’ imprisonment for each conviction, to be served concurrently, and the court encouraged the defendant to take all available rehabilitation opportunities to address the issues contributing to his offending.

Orders