As a man lay dying on the footpath after being knocked to the ground by an unprovoked coward punch, his attacker leaned over him and took a video.
“Come around here, n*****, I’m not a kidder,” Daytona Thompson was heard saying in the video, while filming his victim, Daniel Nganeko.
“I just knocked him the f*** out.”
Nganeko’s whānau have now described being wrecked with grief, pain, rage, hatred and despair after his sudden and violent death.
Exacerbating their distress was the video, which they have seen.
Today, at Thompson’s sentencing for the manslaughter, Nganeko’s mother, Christine Nganeko, addressed him through an emotional victim impact statement.
“You are a thug, a coward and a killer. You mocked our son as he lay dying.
“You filmed Daniel’s last breaths and turned it into a trophy,” she said at the hearing in the High Court at New Plymouth, where a photo of her son sat facing Thompson.
Christine Nganeko said the whānau would never forgive Thompson.
“From this day forward, we want you remembered by this community, by your hapū, by your iwi as Daytona Thompson the coward puncher.”
Hundreds gathered outside the court in support of Daniel Nganeko before the hearing took place.
Most wore T-shirts displaying his photo, and messages advocating against coward punches and for a change in the law to end such violence.
Inside, the public gallery was packed with whānau and friends of both Nganeko and Thompson. A second courtroom was opened to accommodate additional supporters.
The court heard that Thompson, 22, fatally struck Nganeko, 37, on July 26 outside the Tukapa Rugby and Sports Club in New Plymouth.
It happened after a prizegiving evening at the clubrooms, which they had both attended.
Thompson, who has a history of violence, had drunk half a bottle of spirits that night and was seen trying to provoke others into confrontation.
The event finished at about 11.20pm and Nganeko was standing with friends on the footpath on Gladstone Rd, across from the rugby grounds.
Thompson approached Nganeko, whom he did not know, and the pair began talking.
He then swivelled and threw a punch with his “clenched right fist”, which struck Nganeko on his chin.
Nganeko fell backwards and his head hit the edge of the footpath.
He died on July 29, after he was flown to Auckland City Hospital, where scans revealed he had suffered a fractured skull and extensive brain injuries with damage to his frontal and rear lobe.
The court heard that after the attack, Thompson filmed Nganeko then was challenged by bystanders and left the scene.
He turned himself in to the police the next day and was initially charged with assault. That charge was elevated to manslaughter after Nganeko’s death, and Thompson pleaded guilty.
At his sentencing, the victim impact statements of Nganeko’s twin brother, Cameron Nganeko, and their father, TeUraura Nganeko, were also heard.
Through tears, TeUraura Nganeko recalled his last moment with Nganeko before he was attacked.
That night, he dropped Nganeko off at his friend’s house. He and his mates planned to head to the clubrooms later for prizegiving.
“See ya, Dad, thanks for dropping me off, love ya. Can you pick me up at 3am,” TeUraura Nganeko said, recalling his son’s last words to him.
He said Nganeko laughed as he said, “Just kidding, Dad, see ya tomorrow”.
TeUraura Nganeko left his phone on that night, “just in case”. But it wasn’t Daniel Nganeko who called him at 11.30pm. It was Christine Nganeko.
He rushed to the clubrooms and was met by ambulance staff and police officers. TeUraura Nganeko said he immediately knew that his son was in a bad way.
“Why didn’t I make Daniel stay home with me?” TeUraura Nganeko said he had asked himself.
“I was going to cook him his favourite spaghetti bolognese. Why did I feel something in my gut when I dropped him off?
“Why did I stop in the middle of the road, after he got out of the car, and looked in the rear vision mirror? Why did I feel I had to watch him walk away from me like that?”
TeUraura Nganeko detailed the moments and days that followed.
From seeing the helicopter fly off with his son, his and Christine Nganeko’s drive to the Auckland hospital from New Plymouth at 2am, the medical tests, talks with the doctors, loved ones who quickly arrived, a glimmer of hope, then the devastating news that Daniel Nganeko would not pull through, to their final goodbye.
He said Daniel Nganeko was kind, humble, respectful and full of life. He was a beloved son and twin, and a talented creative. He had recently returned to New Plymouth after spending eight years in Melbourne, where he worked as a videographer and a motion graphics designer.
One week before he died, Nganeko had decided to retrain as a secondary school teacher.
“Then out of the blue, Daniel is dead because Daytona Thompson could not control his anger.”
TeUraura Nganeko said he carried an “unending anger” towards him.
“The hate I feel is real and overwhelming because he chose to take from us someone who was good, innocent and loved.
“Every morning, I wake up knowing Daniel’s life was stolen, and that hatred will never leave me.”
Daniel Nganeko’s twin, Cameron Nganeko, stared Thompson down as he began to give his statement.
However, as Cameron Nganeko’s emotions heightened, a victim adviser took over and read it on his behalf.
He said a part of him had died with his brother.
“We were meant to grow old together, to stand side by side through life. He was going to be my best man at my wedding.”
It was their birthday two weeks ago, the first Cameron Nganeko has had to face without Daniel Nganeko.
He pleaded with the judge for justice.
“I will live with a life sentence of grief, anger and emptiness. He [Thompson] should too.”
While Crown prosecutor Cherie Clarke sought a starting point of between nine and 10 years’ imprisonment, defence lawyer Julian Hannam argued for five years.
Clarke said the primary purpose of the sentence was to deter and denounce similar offending, highlighting that coward punch violence has become prolific.
She submitted that a significant aggravating factor in the case was Thompson filming Daniel Nganeko as he lay dying.
Clarke, an experienced prosecutor, said it was one of “the most horrific” things a person could see, especially for the victim’s whānau.
She said Thompson had shown no concern for Nganeko.
Thompson was a recidivist violent offender who had previously received a discharge without conviction for similar offending.
Nganeko was also vulnerable, Clarke submitted, given he did not see the punch coming.
“He was defenceless.”
Defence lawyer Julian Hannam made brief submissions, during which he said Thompson had written a letter to the court.
“I will never forgive myself for what I have done and I will spend the rest of my life trying to be a better person than I was that night,” an excerpt of Thompson’s letter read.
An alcohol and drug report found Thompson had an alcohol disorder, Hannam submitted.
The court also heard that Thompson has now sworn off alcohol and violence, that he understood the devastating impact of his actions and he thought about his victims often, putting himself in their shoes.
He was committed to rehabilitation while in prison.
Justice Paul Radich said there was no form of provocation in the offending and Thompson had used considerable force in his attack.
“You did not offer aid, and after an aggressive exchange with a bystander, you left the scene.”
The act of making the video was cruel and callous, and a further indignity to Nganeko.
The judge, who said Thompson appeared unmoved in the video, believed he had taken the footage to “glorify” his act.
Justice Radich said he could not have regard to community desire for a more severe sentence in circumstances such as this case, or contemplative legislation change.
“I must apply the law as it stands.”
He took a starting point of seven years’ imprisonment, before giving credit for his guilty plea, his youth, the effect his imprisonment will have on his child, and background factors.
Justice Radich did not give a discount for remorse, and imprisoned Thompson for four years and two months. He was issued his first strike warning.
Thompson’s previous violent offending was not considered an aggravating factor in his sentence due to his earlier discharge without conviction.
Following the sentencing, TeUraura Nganeko said Thompson’s prison term would never be enough — because nothing could bring Daniel Nganeko back.
“Daniel was an absolute light in our whānau, in his work, and in his community. He was kind, humble, and creative — the sort of person who made everyone feel seen.
“As a photographer and storyteller, he captured people’s lives with honesty and compassion. As a son, twin and friend, he brought laughter, warmth and aroha wherever he went.”
TeUraura Nganeko spoke of the way in which Daniel Nganeko was killed and Thompson’s history of violence.
He said the reality of what happened to Daniel Nganeko must not be ignored and things must change.
TeUraura Nganeko called for changes to be made to the justice system around how violent offenders were dealt with, and for the Government to fast-track the new law introducing tougher penalties for one-punch crimes.
“It must end with Daniel,” he said.
“We are calling for action. Parliament must fast-track the coward-punch legislation and fix the laws that allow violent offenders to walk free.
“Politicians must be held accountable – because only they can change the laws that failed Daniel."
Tara Shaskey joined NZME in 2022 and is currently an assistant editor and reporter for the Open Justice team. She has been a reporter since 2014 and previously worked at Stuff covering crime and justice, arts and entertainment, and Māori issues.