Tauranga crime victims owed $5.74m reparation as offenders fail to pay

Destiny Church member Ashara Kingi stole nearly $380,000 from her former employer by making multiple illegal withdrawals from his bank account.

A 72-year-old crime victim who lost nearly $400,000 to a corrupt employee had to cover the theft with large debt, and says it is a “joke” he has only received $2400 so far from the ex-worker.

The man is one of many Tauranga and Western Bay of Plenty crime victims owed almost $5.8 million in reparation, according to figures released to the Bay of Plenty Times under the Official Information Act.

The Ministry of Justice said as of June 30, 2024, offenders sentenced in the Tauranga District Court owed $5.74m in reparation with $1.88m of that overdue.

The ministry said, as of June 30, the highest amount of outstanding reparation owed by a single offender sentenced in the Tauranga District Court was $399,658. The reparation order was made almost six years ago.

Ōtūmoetai resident Larry John O’Neill, 72, said he was still waiting for his former part-time bookkeeper Ashara Jaymie Lee Kingi to pay back what she owed him.

The 33-year-old Destiny Church member stole $377,167.69, of which more than $100,000 was spent on fast food, restaurants, layby items and gambling. She transferred almost $45,000 to her parents’ and brother’s accounts. The prosecution summary did not state what happened to the rest of the money.

Ashara Jaymie Kingi, 33, admitted stealing $377,167.92 from Larry John O'Neill while employed as his part-time bookkeeper.

Kingi was ordered to repay $350,000 when sentenced in the Tauranga District Court in April after she earlier pleaded guilty to a charge of theft by a person in a special relationship. She was also jailed for two years and two months.

O’Neill told the Bay of Plenty Times that Kingi had only paid back $2400 and, as of January 16, he had not received a payment since June 4.

He said, in his opinion, reparation debts were not rigorously pursued and “it’s just a joke”. Criminals were being “looked after” in jail while others were left to mop up their messes, he said.

O’Neill said it was disappointing he could not access the “fancy stuff” she bought with his money so he could sell the items and recover some of the money she owed.

The saga had taken “a huge toll” on him and on his late mother who died in May last year, he said.

“I had to borrow a large amount of money to repay the Flexi loan and the interest back.

“I can’t stop thinking about it. This was someone I trusted and helped, and I don’t trust anyone now, that’s the sad part.”

O’Neill said he wanted somebody to pursue what he was owed “even when I’m dead” so the money could go to his son and two grandchildren.

“My lawyer or somebody, I don’t care, as long as somebody makes sure she pays it and she’s suffering for what she did. It just feels like a bad dream … It’s very frustrating and the courts’ debt collectors should be out there chasing her and other offenders every day.”

O’Neill said he did not know what repayment arrangements Kingi had made with the court.

The Bay of Plenty Times applied to the Tauranga District Court for information on the status of Kingi’s reparation payments. A court spokeswoman said the application would need to be sent to Kingi or her lawyer and the police prosecutor.

If there were any objections, the matter would be referred to a district court judge for a decision, she said.

The Bay of Plenty Times approached Kingi’s lawyer at the time, Renee Harley, for comment. Harley said she no longer represented Kingi.

Fines and reparation enforcement measures

Once an offender has been ordered to pay fines or reparation, they had 28 days to resolve the outstanding amount in full or negotiate sustainable repayment arrangements where possible, a Ministry of Justice spokesperson said.

“Enforcement measures that a court registrar can take to collect overdue amounts, include clamping vehicles, seizing and selling property, making compulsory deductions from the debtor’s source of income or bank account, issuing warrants for arrest and suspending drivers’ licences.”

The debtor’s ability to travel overseas could also be prevented, the Ministry spokesperson said.

The data

Tauranga District Court judges imposed more than $5.2m in fines and just over $2.2m in reparation in the 2023/24 financial year.

In that time, $297,675 in fines were remitted or wiped.

In the previous financial year, $5,219,131 in fines and $2,383,109 in reparation were imposed.

A total of $14 million in fines and reparation was owed as of June 30 last year, $4.65m of which was overdue.

Nationally, $168.8 million in fines and $111.7m of reparation was outstanding as of June 30, 2024, of which $37.7 million in reparation payments were overdue.

The single-highest outstanding reparation nationally owed by an offender in that period was $4.88m.

Sandra Conchie is a senior journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post who has been a journalist for 24 years. She mainly covers police, court and other justice stories, as well as general news. She has been a Canon Media Awards regional/community reporter of the year.