Guilty plea to drink driving causing death of Sione Tuiano

Sione Palei Tuiano, aka Bah Tuiano, was a dedicated father to Anne, 5, and 2-year-old son Bureta. Photo/supplied

A man has pleaded guilty to killing one person and injuring four others in a drink-driving incident in Upper Hutt last year.

Manus Joseph Cannon today pleaded guilty to a number of charges over the July 2 crash, which killed beloved Lower Hutt father Sione Palei "Bah" Tuiano and injured four other people, including Cannon's own passenger.

Cannon, 36, had a blood alcohol level of 133mg at the time. The limit is 80mg.

Tuiano's tearful family members filled the public gallery in the Wellington District Court this morning waiting to find out Cannon's plea.

Through his lawyer, Cannon pleaded guilty to one count of drink driving causing death and four counts of drink driving causing injury.

After the hearing, Cannon and his lawyer, Val Nisbet, turned to the family in the gallery, and Nisbet expressed Cannon's remorse to them.

He said Cannon had read the victim impact statements, and that he wanted to say, being from Ireland, that an Irish family would not have shown so much forgiveness to him.

Tuiano's family had been celebrating a birthday hours before the tragic accident.

Family earlier described Tuiano as a loving father to his two young children, a keen league player, and a man of faith.

"Everybody who knew him - he'd just meet someone and automatically they were brothers," sister Seta Tuiano said.

"My brother lived by the motto: 'Live life to the fullest, but always trust in God and always have faith'."