New Lynn Gull petrol station shooting: Junior Toleafoa jailed after shooting stranger in head

• Russell Falani Junior Toleafoa was sentenced to just over five years for shooting Shum-Kuen-Ip in the head.
• Shum-Kuen-Ip suffered a permanent brain injury and requires ongoing rehabilitation and assistance.
• Toleafoa was also charged with methamphetamine possession and unlawful firearm possession.

A 22-year-old man who shot a complete stranger in the head after a verbal stoush at a petrol station in West Auckland has been sentenced to five years and two months in jail.

Russell Falani Junior Toleafoa, of Mt Albert, shot a man with a rifle at close range at the Gull Portage Rd petrol station in New Lynn on March 1, 2023.

In the police summary of facts, Toleafoa claimed he was provoked by the victim, Shum-Kuen-Ip, after the pair had begun talking while pumping fuel about 6.24pm.

Toleafoa was accompanied by at least two associates at the petrol station. After the conversation ended and Shum-Kuen-Ip had got back behind the wheel of his car, Toleafoa got into his own car and retrieved a rifle.

“[Toleafoa] stated that Mr Shum-Kuen-Ip provoked him and said, ‘you’re not going to use that you bitch’ and so decided to shoot him,” the police summary of facts states.

In sentencing Toleafoa in Auckland District Court today, Judge Anna Fitzgibbon described the outcome as “one of those lose, lose situations” for both families, who had packed out courtroom 14: “No one is going to be happy with the result.”

“His [Shum-Kuen-Ip] life will never be the same again,” Judge Fitzgibbon said.

“He may have been giving you lip, but he went and sat back in his car ... It was an intimidatory action for you all to approach the car.

“There was an element of premeditation. You deliberately went into your car ... You deliberately shot that gun in his head.”

Shum-Kuen-Ip’s mother’s victim impact statement touched on the profound difficulties of the traumatic brain injury her son must now manage for the rest of his life. He was left with bullet fragments in his brain that will remain there.

“He is a 22-year-old that shouldn’t be walking with assistance … He can not be left alone. Someone needs to be with him 24/7,” she said.

“He has bouts of depression as he is not able to do lots of things he used to be able to with his daughter. Because of your lack of control I cannot protect him from this pain and suffering. You have physically and emotionally scarred my son for life. Why have you done this to my son? I have watched you and your family at court and there is no remorse.

“[In] My son’s words ‘you have robbed me from ever being normal again’. My son must suffer for the rest of his life.”

Toleafoa was also up for possession of methamphetamine charges today after 45 grams of the drug was found by police when he was arrested after the shooting. Toleafoa was charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and unlawful possession of a firearm.

A car abandoned at the scene of the shooting. Photo / Hayden Woodward

Toleafoa was arrested in the city after a brief but high-profile manhunt and appeared in court the next day, where he was granted interim name suppression but did not seek bail.

Toleafoa and at least two other men had approached Shum-Kuen-Ip in his Mitsubishi at the New Lynn Gull station. The police summary of facts describes the build-up to the dispute between two groups of young men. The Crown agreed there was some “nexus” for a background of violence for the defendant, but that any sentencing discount needed to be tempered by the nature of the violent offending.

The Crown also argued that any discount for youth should be tempered by the defendant’s lack of remorse and his potential of rehabilitation.

“The defendant doesn’t seem to accept his responsibility in respect to this offending … Presently he is not exactly ready to move on.”

Toleafoa’s defence counsel, Annabel Ives, argued the shooting was not premeditated, and that although he was with other men during the attack, the victim was also with a group at the service station.

Ives argued a starting point for the wounding charges of nine years is appropriate, with an uplift for the drug offending. They requested a discount of 20% for a guilty plea - although initially Toleafoa pleaded not guilty.

“It is very impulsive offending ... It’s really not premeditated. It’s very tragic to have young men traveling around with guns ... But it certainly wasn’t premeditated ... it was an immature reaction to a verbal slight,” Ives said.

The defence also argued Toleafoa’s immaturity contributed to the crime and should be taken into consideration.

Russell Falani Junior Toleafoa, of Mt Albert, shot young father Shum-Kuen-Ip with a rifle at close range at the Gull Portage Rd petrol station in New Lynn on March 1, 2023. He was sentenced in the Auckland District Court on August 23, 2024.

Police and emergency services at the incident at the Gull New Lynn near the intersection of Clark St and Portage Rd. Photo / Hayden Woodward

Judge Fitzgibbon applied a 20% discount for Toleafoa’s guilty plea, 10% for having no previous convictions, 15% for personal background outlined in a section 27 report and a 10% discount for the offender’s youth.

“You can see the victim in court and it is quite clear that he has a severe injury,” Judge Fitzgibbon said, also acknowledging Toleafoa was a victim of bullying and began drinking and using cannabis as a teen.

“Whatever sentence is to denounce your conduct and to prevent it from happening again.”

Fitzgibbon said the crime had left a “severe and permanent” impact on the victim.

Shu-Kuen-Ip reflected on the change in her son since injury, citing 125 medical appointments and five emergency visits to the hospital.

“Prior to getting shot in the head my son was a bubbly loving dad … that greeted all his family members with a smile and a hug. He was a hard-working independent man … he was able to do things for himself. He always asked if I needed anything for his brothers when he got paid.”

Tom Dillane is an Auckland-based journalist covering local government and crime as well as sports investigations. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is deputy head of news.