Baby-toting burglar gets jail time

THE MUSCLE: Holly Walker being sentenced at Whangarei District Court yesterday. PHOTO/APN

A Whangarei woman who took her 6-month-old baby along on a burglary, then drove at the homeowner when he discovered the break-in, has been jailed.

Holly Walker, 27, appeared in Whangarei District Court for sentence yesterday after pleading guilty to charges of injuring with intent to injure from an incident last year, and charges of burglary and aggravated assault from an incident on September, this year.

Judge Duncan Harvey said Walker and two others went in a car to a home in Pipiwai on September 30 and the house was burgled. Walker brought her 6-month-old baby with her.

As Walker was waiting in the car, the homeowner arrived, saw co-accused Taylem Junior Henry walking out of the back of the section with some of his property, and tried to stop Walker leaving.

Judge Harvey said Walker told the man she would run him down if he tried to stop her and nudged him with the the front bumper, causing the man to get out of the way fearing he would be hit.

The injuring with intent charge arose after Walker and three others went to a woman's home in Tikipunga in July last year and forcibly removed the woman, before driving her around Whangarei where the woman was repeatedly assaulted by Walker and two others.

Judge Harvey said the pre-sentence report for Walker showed that while she had been in jail awaiting sentence she had taken steps to address her offending. Walker has a number of previous convictions, mainly for dishonesty, including nine for theft.

The judge accepted that Walker - a mother-of-four - was not the lead offender in any of the two cases and sentenced her to 14 months' jail for the injuring with intent charge and a cumulative sentence of 18 months' jail for the burglary and aggravated assault charges. Henry was earlier sentenced to four months' community detention and 12 months' intensive supervision for his role in the burglary.

Also yesterday, one of Walker's co-accused for the case from July 2012 appeared for sentence. Te Rani Helen Walters, 19, had earlier pleaded guilty to one charge of assault with intent to injure and three of injuring with intent to injure.

Judge Harvey said as the mother of a young daughter he hoped that Walters had used her time in prison awaiting sentencing to reflect on the fact she could not be an effective mother while in jail. He said if she did not take steps to address her violent tendencies she would be back in jail again and again.

Walters, Walker and another - who has yet to be dealt with by the court over the incident - went to the woman's home about 7am on July 15, 2012. Judge Harvey said Walters was "the muscle", dragging the woman from her home and inflicted most of the violence.

Judge Harvey sentenced Walters to two years and four months' jail, to be served cumulatively with a three-year and four months' sentence imposed earlier this year for violent offending committed after the July, 2012 incident.