Brazen thief breaks into house, barricades himself inside, then starts a fire

Joey Emery brazenly walked into the house before gesturing at the occupant to be quiet as he went about stealing items. He then started a fire inside the house. Photo / 123rf

A man brazenly walked through the front door of a home, telling the occupant to be quiet before a confrontation with police saw him barricade himself inside and set fire to furniture.

Police managed to get inside the house and arrest Joey Haimona Emery. The fire was put out while a table and part of the floor of the house in Hamilton were left charred.

The incident on December 30, 2022, was one of a string of burglaries and thefts for which Emery was jailed last week in the Hamilton District Court.

It all began in Cash Converters, Rotorua, on August 19 when he walked in with his own bike helmet, swapped it for one worth $150 and walked out again. Twenty minutes later he stole a $2000 mountain bike that was locked up on Hinemoa St.

On December 22, he approached a Hamilton East house. He looked through the window and saw a woman sleeping. He opened the ranch slider and stole four bottles of alcohol, a backpack and a mountain bike before strolling off down the driveway.

One of the occupants was returning home, saw Emery with the mountain bike and tried to stop him.

Emery got off the bike, pulled out a hatchet and chased the man back to the house while waving the hatchet in a threatening manner.

As the victim ducked, Emery snatched the bag of shopping from the man and fled on the stolen bike.

By June 10 this year, he was in custody at Spring Hill prison.

As he was being taken back to his cell, Emery suddenly became aggressive, walked up to a Corrections officer and punched him in the face.

The officer used his pepper spray and was able to get Emery back to his cell.

Emery’s counsel, Melissa James, urged Judge Noel Cocurullo to take into account the contents of Emery’s Section 27 cultural report, which spoke of a “sense of disconnection culturally, his exposure to violence and neglect and physical abuse, then foster homes and moving about this environment”.

He was also the father of two children to two different women. He was “grateful” that they were well taken care of as he spent time in jail, she said.

Emery did not attempt to shift blame for what happened, but James did note his comments in a pre-sentence report about a lack of empathy for the victims.

James said this was not an aggravating feature “but an absence of a mitigating factor”.

The 36-year-old was now keen to get better and change, if not for him then for his family, she said.

Judge Cocurullo jailed Emery for four years and ordered him to pay reparation of $580.41.

Belinda Feek has been a reporter for 19 years, and at the Herald for eight years, joining the Open Justice team in 2022.