Man jailed, woman avoids conviction, after fatal 50th birthday shooting in Stokes Valley

Rawiri Zane Wharerau, 39, was killed in December 2023, during a 50th birthday celebration for his cousin Robert Hauki snr.

Rawiri Zane Wharerau was a proud whānau man who would do anything he could to help his loved ones.

His final act of generosity and love was to host a surprise 50th birthday party for his cousin Robert Huaki snr in the Stokes Valley home Rawiri shared with his older brother, Hemi.

Throwing the party meant a lot to Rawiri, his son Kain has remembered.

“He was proud and happy to be hosting a celebration at our home. He couldn’t wait for my uncle Rob to show up and see what he had put on for him.”

But that milestone celebration turned to chaos and tragedy when, in the early hours of December 16, 2023, Rawiri was fatally shot and Hemi, also shot, was seriously injured.

After the shooting, two partygoers, a man and a woman, stood trial on charges of murder and attempted murder, with the woman facing an additional charge of assault with a weapon.

The man, who has interim name suppression, was found guilty of manslaughter and discharging a firearm, and the woman, whose identity is permanently suppressed, was found guilty of assault with a weapon.

Yesterday, they appeared in the High Court at Wellington before Justice Dale La Hood for sentencing.

‘I’m going to die’

There were 19 victim impact statements, eight of which were read in court, which emphasised the tragedy’s ongoing impact.

Hemi’s statement described the close bond he shared with his brother Rawiri – also known as Tubs.

He said Rawiri, 39, was his best friend and his ”little big brother,“ and not a day went by that he didn’t think about him.

Hemi said his life would never be the same.

He hadn’t slept through the night since the shooting, and when he did sleep, he dreamed of Rawiri.

Hemi spent weeks on crutches because of the shooting, suffered PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), and struggled financially. A bullet remained lodged in his left hip.

Rawiri Zane Wharerau was killed in December 2023 during a 50th birthday celebration for his cousin.

“I thought to myself, more than once, I’m going to die,” he said.

Hemi felt the accused couple had betrayed them.

“I hope you pay for what you have done in this life before you go to your next life. I believe in karma and what goes around comes around,” he told them.

‘A situation of your own making’

Outlining the night’s events, Justice La Hood said the couple left the party after an argument between themselves and Huaki snr.

Huaki snr had allegedly made a derogatory remark about the couple’s alleged ties to the Mongrel Mob.

The man, a member of Mangu Kaha, a gang associated with the Black Power, took exception to the comment. The couple left, but not before the man made threats to return.

A short time later, they returned with a gun and fought with partygoers on the street. During the fight, the man knocked Huaki snr unconscious, while the woman hit Hemi in the head several times with the gun.

They went back to their house and then returned to the party a final time.

The man claimed he returned to the party to find $2000 cash that had earlier fallen out of his bumbag.

“The loss of the money, in combination with the disrespect you believed you had been shown, motivated you to go back to the address and assert your authority,” Justice La Hood said.

Arriving at the house, the man racked the gun and said “cheeky c****” to those seated under a gazebo.

The backyard at the Wharerau house in Stokes Valley where Rawiri Wharerau was killed and his older brother Hemi was injured.

As the group advanced on the man, he fired one shot, followed by three more, hitting Hemi in the lower abdomen, groin and leg, the judge said.

As he fled down the driveway, he let off another shot at torso height, which struck and fatally wounded Rawiri.

Justice La Hood said the man knew the risks that were involved when he fired the gun.

“It was a situation of your own making.”

Celebration turns to tragedy

After reading the victim impact statements, the judge said it was clear Rawiri was a generous, kind, and humble father, brother, uncle, and cousin. The type of person who brought people together, he said.

Kain’s statement said nothing had prepared him or his family for the pain and shock of losing his father in such a violent and senseless way.

He described his father as the being the heart of their family.

“He was a man who lived for others and always put his loved ones first, no matter what challenges he faced.”

Kain said what was meant to be a celebration turned into the most devastating day of his life.

“It was a day that should have been filled with laughter, whānau and joy. Instead, it became the day he was taken from us.”

Wendy Te Paki, a relative of Rawiri’s, said that when she found out he’d been killed her heart stopped.

But sadness soon turned to anger towards the defendants.

The driveway to the Wharerau house in Stokes Valley.

“I cannot understand why. Just why? Why was he killed?” she asked.

She said Rawiri had so much to live for.

“The reality is, I hate what yous did. Yous had no right, it’s unforgivable, it’s evil, and I want yous to tell the truth. If only yous were honest from the beginning,” she said.

Remorseful and rehabilitative

In Crown submissions, prosecutor Sally Carter sought a starting point of 12 years’ jail for the man, while his lawyer, Elizabeth Hall, suggested 7.5 years.

Carter said the aggravating factors included the use of the firearm, premeditation and that Rawiri and Hemi were unarmed. She also noted they were shot on their property.

In mitigation, Hall sought discounts for her client’s attempts to admit to Rawiri’s manslaughter a year before his trial. She told the court discussions around an early plea on the charges that related to Hemi had stalled, because she and the Crown were unable to reach agreement on the manslaughter charge.

Credit for the months spent on electronically monitored bail, his remorse, rehabilitative prospects and difficult background, which led him to gang life, should also be applied, she submitted.

Justice La Hood said that while the man appeared remorseful for shooting Rawiri and deserved credit for trying to admit manslaughter before the trial, remorse for shooting Hemi would have been reflected in a guilty plea – which he did not enter.

He also continued to deny aspects of the offending by telling the presentence report writer he’d fired two shots at Hemi and suggested someone else had fired the third.

But Justice La Hood said it was clear the man was engaging well in rehabilitation and was committed to reconnecting with his culture.

Taking all factors into account, he sentenced the man to eight years’ imprisonment.

The judge declined permanent name suppression but made an interim order after Hall indicated she would appeal that decision.

Turning to the woman’s sentencing, her lawyer, Letizea Ord, sought a discharge without conviction and permanent name suppression.

She was found guilty of striking Hemi during the fight on the street, leaving him with a 2cm cut to his head.

Ord said her client regretted injuring Hemi and took responsibility for what had happened.

But surrounded by gang members that night, she was extremely frightened and had panicked, Ord explained.

Carter submitted that it was reasonably serious offending, and that when the woman was wielding the gun, she hadn’t acted in self-defence.

The prosecutor suggested home detention was appropriate.

Justice La Hood accepted that while the woman would have been scared, she had also supported her aggressive partner.

“Your actions were to support his aggression out of a genuine, but misplaced sense of loyalty to him,” he said.

In weighing up the applications, Justice La Hood found that while the offending wasn’t at the serious end of the scale, it also wasn’t minor.

But considering the defendant’s young age, lack of previous convictions, rehabilitative prospects, and that her offending was out of loyalty to her partner, he granted both applications.

He said it would allow her to “put these tragic events behind you and fulfil your obvious potential”.

“I implore you to do that,” the judge said.

There were murmurs of discontent from Rawiri and Hemi’s supporters in the public gallery as the sentence was announced.

Outside court, Kain said the whānau weren’t happy with the man’s sentence and the prospect that, with good behaviour, he could be released from jail within a few years.

Catherine Hutton is an Open Justice reporter, based in Wellington. She has worked as a journalist for 20 years, including at the Waikato Times and RNZ. Most recently, she was working as a media adviser at the Ministry of Justice.