Kiwi rapist Hoane Kahu avoids 501 deportation from Australia

Recidivist Kiwi offender Hoane Kahu will be allowed to remain in Australia. Photo / Facebook

A New Zealand-born man who raped a drunk 15-year-old in Australia has avoided deportation so he can care for family members.

Hoane Joseph Kahu was 20 when, in 2005, he saw the teen walking by herself in Gladstone, Queensland.

He pulled the heavily intoxicated girl by her hair and raped her.

The teen went on to share how the sex attack changed her life, saying she was once an outgoing and social person, but afterwards she was scared to go out and rarely socialised.

In 2006, Kahu was convicted of three counts of rape, all relating to the teen, and sentenced to eight-and-a-half years’ imprisonment.

Three years later, he was warned by Australian authorities that they were considering cancelling his visa due to his criminal record.

However, in 2010, he was released from prison on parole and told that his visa would not be cancelled, but further offending could change that.

Kahu did not start reoffending until 2020, and was jailed in late 2023 on drugs and dishonesty charges.

Then last year, he was told his visa had been cancelled.

Under Australia’s Migration Act, foreigners who serve more than 12 months in prison become liable for deportation. The deportees are colloquially known as 501s, named after the section of the act that allows it.

Kahu unsuccessfully sought revocation of the cancellation decision before appealing to the Administrative Review Tribunal of Australia.

Last week, the tribunal released its “finely balanced” judgment, which set aside the decision to cancel his visa, allowing him to remain in Australia, where he has lived since he was 4 years old.

According to the judgment, Kahu has a criminal history dating back to 2003, and includes stealing, breaching probation, home invasion and unlawfully operating a motor vehicle.

His most serious offending was the 2005 rape of the teen.

Kahu claimed at the time he did not realise his victim had not given consent and had taken her lack of resistance as permission.

Now, he appreciates the harm he caused and that he had potentially ruined her life, he told the tribunal.

According to the judgment, Kahu began using methamphetamine in 2018 and his use of the drug gradually escalated. Following the loss of his rental accommodation in 2020, he was using it every day.

He started reoffending that year, and went on to be convicted of a raft of offences, including stealing, fraud, drug possession and drug-driving.

There were also domestic violence-related incidents involving a former partner, including one where he dragged the woman by her hair and grabbed her by the neck.

‘This is a very finely balanced decision’

In his appeal to the tribunal, Kahu said he was now in a stable relationship, and looked after his severely disabled brother as well as his unwell mother, and his partner, who is paralysed as a result of a serious motorcycle accident.

Kahu’s partner gave evidence that he was a hard worker, humble, honest and forthcoming.

His mother acknowledged that her son had made mistakes, but said he had accepted responsibility for them and had consistently shown a deep dedication to his ongoing personal growth.

Multiple other family members, employers and community members testified to Kahu’s good character and standing in the community.

The tribunal acknowledged Kahu had a wide network of family and friends in Australia, and had lived there almost his entire life. By contrast, he has only a few family members in New Zealand.

It found that deporting Kahu would have a major effect on that family, particularly his brother, mother and partner.

“He would arrive in New Zealand without having existing social or family support. He will likely experience stress and social isolation as he sets about establishing himself in New Zealand,” the judgment said.

“[Kahu] has lived almost his entire life in Australia. He has strong ties to his family, and the interests of his mother and severely disabled brother are best served by revocation [of the cancellation of his visa].

“This is a very finely balanced decision.”

Jeremy Wilkinson is an Open Justice reporter based in Manawatū covering courts and justice issues with an interest in tribunals. He has been a journalist for nearly a decade and has worked for NZME since 2022.