Featherston youths storm home

A Featherston man is vowing to stand against more than 20 drunken teens who laid siege to his home -- smashing windows and threatening violence -- in attacks linked to the deaths of two boys in a Masterton crash at the weekend.

Solo father and mill worker Stephen Longshaw, 45, said his family home in Featherston had been targeted in the hours after a Sunday night vigil in Featherston for Hoani Korewha and Pacer Willacy-Scott, who died of injuries received when the driver of a stolen car in which they were travelling fled police in central Masterton before he lost control of the vehicle and struck a light pole in Queen St.

The two teen survivors of the crash, also of Featherston, were yesterday in a stable condition in Wairarapa Hospital.

Mr Longshaw said more than 20 teenage boys and girls, who he believed had been at the vigil for their dead friends, were loud and ferocious when they stormed the home he shares with his son, 17, and daughter, 15, about 11pm on Sunday.

"They were all drunk and all wanted to have fights. I came out to the sound of rocks being thrown on my roof. I told them to leave but they wouldn't go, and they were screaming abuse at my girl and blaming her for the deaths of those boys."

His daughter hid inside and called police, he said, terrified her "former so-called friends" would eventually force their way indoors.

Police arrived and the teens scattered after one of the boys was arrested.

Mr Longshaw immediately took his daughter to a family member in another region, and returned home about 2.30am to find his letterbox destroyed and rocks thrown through five windows along the street-facing side of his uninsured home.

He said a neighbour had heard the windows shattering and told him there had been shouting and somebody screaming out "you murdered my brother".

At noon yesterday a group of about 15 teens again appeared at his gate, he said, and were wearing gang colours and "threatening to run me out of town and kill my daughter".

"But I've been here for more than a year now. I have to stand my ground. I'm not running anywhere," he said. "They can't just go around threatening people. They're just ruining the community and this needs to be addressed, before somebody else gets hurt or dies."

Mr Longshaw was sure the teens would come back before Hoani and Pacer were farewelled, and he could not risk leaving home and paying his own respects as planned.

His neighbours Colleen and Ron Randle, who have lived in the town for more than 50 years, said they had become involved with the teens who returned yesterday after Mrs Randle asked them not to swear.

The 76-year-old said the teens turned on her and threatened to return and damage her property as well. Mr Randle said the couple had not taken the threat seriously and were confident the police would handle any danger.

They also had faith in the town they have called home for most of their lives, and the people of Featherston.