Minginui man Mark Jefferson denies manslaughter of Stuart Stobie

Mark Jefferson appears in the High Court at Rotorua charged with the manslaughter of Stuart Stobie following a hunting incident in Minginui in March. Photo / Kelly Makiha

• Mark Kelvin Jefferson, 46, has been charged with manslaughter over the hunting death of Stuart Stobie.
• Jefferson pleaded not guilty to that and other charges, including unlawfully killing a deer.
• Justice Layne Harvey remanded Jefferson on bail, with a trial set for May 2027.

A Minginui man has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter over the hunting death of Kawerau man Stuart Stobie.

Mark Kelvin Jefferson, 46, a labourer from the small rural Bay of Plenty community of Minginui, appeared in the High Court at Rotorua this morning before Justice Layne Harvey.

Jefferson entered not guilty pleas to manslaughter and two other hunting-related charges.

Stuart Stobie died on a hunting trip in Minginui in the Bay of Plenty on March 21, 2025.

It is alleged Jefferson caused the death of Stuart Maxwell Stobie on March 21 at Minginui by unlawfully firing a .308 firearm at him.

Jefferson has also denied a charge of unlawfully killing a deer in the Kaingaroa Forest without authority to be on that land, and a charge of unlawfully possessing a Tikka Point 308 rifle.

Jefferson’s lawyer, Andy Hill, said he would not ask for continued name suppression.

Justice Harvey remanded Jefferson on continued bail to reappear on July 11 for a callover. A one-week trial was set down for May 2027.

The maximum penalty for manslaughter is life imprisonment.

The Rotorua Daily Post reported tributes to Stobie, 72, following his death, with those who knew him saying he loved the outdoors and went hunting and gathering whenever he could.

Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.