A Whangarei taxi driver feared for his life after he was stabbed in the head with a screwdriver, the Whangarei District Court heard yesterday.
The assailant, Roger Herewini Matthews, 19, yesterday pleaded guilty to three indictably laid charges of aggravated robbery, aggravated wounding, and unlawful taking of a taxi, all relating to the January 2 attack.
Herewini had stabbed the driver's head so forcefully, the blow caused the screwdriver shaft to ricochet off the man's skull and penetrate 50mm along the side of the skull, beneath the scalp, the court heard.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Barrie Iggo said that Herewini had found a sharpened screwdriver on the footpath as he hitchhiked along Kamo Rd, Whangarei, and decided to rob a taxi driver to get some money.
He called Kiwi Carlton Cabs and arranged a ride to Pipiwai Rd.
About 8.39pm, the driver picked up Herewini who sat directly behind the driver and gave him directions.
When the driver stopped to let Herewini out, the passenger attacked him from behind, stabbing him with the screwdriver.
The broken shaft lodged in the driver's head as he struggled frantically to escape. Once outside the taxi, the driver yelled: "Take the taxi, it's yours".
The victim escaped through a hedge and sought help, dislodging the screwdriver with his hand.
Herewini drove off in the taxi at speeds of up to 120kmh before going off the road into a ditch, rolling the car.
He climbed out through a smashed window, taking $100 in coins from the taxi's change dispenser.
Police dogs tracked a scent through several paddocks but Herewini was not found and walked home that night.
He was subsequently identified through fingerprints left in the taxi and arrested on May 31.
When spoken to, he admitted assaulting the driver and taking the taxi, saying he was unemployed and needed the money.
The taxi driver spent a night in hospital for treatment to his stab wound but has required ongoing medical treatment.
Herewini remains in custody awaiting sentence on August 8.
- NORTHERN ADVOCATE
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