By PATRICK GOWER
A Hamilton judge bemoaned having to send young Maori to jail when sentencing three men for a terrifying home invasion they committed "to get some more alcohol".
The trio gave a 15-year-old boy a prolonged beating while his younger brother and a friend hid under their beds during the midnight raid on an Otorohanga house in January.
They stole beer flagons, a PlayStation, skateboard and cellphone.
The ringleader, 24-year-old Wiremu Boyce Preston, was sentenced to eight years in prison by Judge Mary-Beth Sharp in the Hamilton District Court yesterday.
He had been found guilty of aggravated robbery and injuring with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Roy Sullivan Hepi, 20, and Tuhi Kitemoana Callaghan, 18, were both jailed for five years after pleading guilty to their parts in the crime.
Judge Sharp told the court, which was packed with the offenders' whanau: "It is a sad day to send young men of any persuasion, particularly young Maori men, to prison for such a lengthy period of time."
She hoped the "relatively minimal sentence" would give them some hope of a productive life after their release.
The court heard that the young victims now live in fear of the day the men are released, and of further concerns for their safety because of Preston's links to the Mongrel Mob through his father.
The children were alone on the night of the incident - their father was at a tangi.
When the 15-year-old answered a knock on the door he was hit by a tackle from a masked Preston.
Then began what the judge described as a "sordid beating". Callaghan and Hepi joined in as they dragged the youth through the house, kicking and stomping on him, mainly attacking his head.
Preston denies any involvement in the crime, although it was argued that this could be memory loss caused by the alcohol he had drunk beforehand.
Callaghan had told his lawyer: "When I have heaps to drink, the body goes strong but my mind deserts me."
The court heard that Callaghan was troubled by learning disabilities and a violent background that included referral to an anger management counsellor while at primary school, violence at secondary school, and assaulting a social worker.
The defence argued that it was a spur-of-the-moment attack to get more alcohol.
Judge Sharp described the trio as "surprise prisoners".
"These are three young men who are otherwise good. Unfortunately the havoc wreaked on the victims, their families and the community leaves me with no alternative."
Judge upset at jail terms for bashing
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