A man has died overnight following a street fight in Ōtara, with police launching a homicide investigation.
Video / NZ Herald
A teenager who was charged with murder following a fatal street fight in South Auckland two months ago can now be named.
Suppression lapsed today as Ōtara resident Tailasa Vakavale Otuha’Apai Pongia, 19, made his first appearance in the High Court at Auckland.
He entered a not guiltyplea through defence lawyer John Corby as he stood silently in the courtroom dock.
Police found two men with critical injuries at an Ōtara address just before midnight on Friday, August 1, after responding to reports of a group brawl in the area.
Both injured men were rushed to the hospital and 19-year-old Greig Kelvin Temarama-Abela died a short time later.
The other man was discharged from hospital the next day.
Tailasa Pongia appears in the High Court at Auckland in October 2025, after he was charged with the murder of 19-year-old Greig Kelvin Temarama-Abela during an August 2025 street fight. Photo / Michael Craig
Police immediately charged Pongia with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm for the injuries to the person who survived. He wasn’t charged with murder until a month and a half later.
If convicted of the charges, Pongia could face up to life imprisonment for murder and up to 14 years’ imprisonment for wounding.
He has also entered a not guilty plea to the wounding charge.
Police investigate the scene where a teen died following a fight in Otara in August 2025. Photo / Hayden Woodward
Justice Mathew Downs today ordered a four-week trial for both charges to begin in October next year.
The teen was remanded in custody to await his next administrative hearing, set for December.
Craig Kapitan is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice. He joined the Herald in 2021 and has reported on courts since 2002 in three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand.
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