Terse words turned into an "ongoing" attack, with three men following a couple home.
Terse words outside a pub on a Saturday afternoon ended with a “trail of blood” at a Bay of Plenty property, after three men followed a couple home and beat them up.
The assault began when victim Beau-Derek Toi Toi thought one of the defendants was staring at him, as Toi Toi drove past The Village Green pub on his way to the Ōmokoroa shops last July.
He yelled: “What’s your f***ing problem?” before getting out of his car and confronting Fletcher Shane Laurence, who was at the pub having a drink with a woman.
Toi Toi believed Laurence and the woman were “staring at him”.
The two men exchanged words, with Laurence suggesting they “meet at the top of the hill in 20 minutes”.
But Toi Toi left.
According to the Crown summary of facts he “did not want the verbal exchange to escalate into a fight”, so he and his partner went to the laundromat and, about 20 minutes later, headed home.
However, Laurence enlisted the help of two friends, and the trio followed Toi Toi and his partner, Pania Pettifer, home, pulling into their driveway behind them.
There they began an “ongoing” attack on the couple, for which two of the three were today sentenced in the Tauranga District Court.
According to the summary of facts, Samuel Sparham was wearing “black gloves with padded knuckles” as he got out of the car, driven by a man who can’t be named for legal reasons, and accused Toi Toi of threatening his family.
The driver and Sparham punched Toi Toi about 20 times, hitting his face and body as he was pushed up against the car.
Toi Toi managed to punch Sparham once, then made his way around to the side of the house.
Pettifer approached Laurence and asked him, “Are you going to f***ing hit me?”
He pushed her to the ground and kept walking around the house to find Toi Toi, who was now being held by his arms by the other two men.
Pettifer had followed, and Laurence again pushed her to the ground before kicking Toi Toi in the chest.
As Pettifer got up and ran towards Toi Toi, Sparham pushed her over, and the three men returned to their Subaru.
After getting free, Toi Toi wedged himself in a gap between the top and bottom part of the house.
Laurence said to Toi Toi: “There’s no problem now, eh, it’s all sorted... you can’t call the police because we know where you live and we’re gangsters”.
The summary of facts stated after the attack, there was a “trail of blood” along the victims’ property.
An ambulance took Toi Toi to hospital where he was found to have fractures to his ribs and face, as well as swelling on his forehead.
Reparation was sought by the victims for the “security cameras and dog” they’d acquired, due to feeling unsafe after the attack.
The pair’s victim impact statements spoke of the continued anxiety they both suffer, and are on medication for, as well as the impact it’s had on their ability to sleep.
They now own four dogs, and Toi Toi still has breathing difficulties because of the injuries to his nose and sinuses.
They both fear bumping into the trio again, and are reluctant to go out in public.
The three faced charges of injuring with intent to injure and common assault, and the driver also faced a charge of driving while disqualified.
Laurence sought a sentence indication by Judge Melinda Mason, which all three accepted, in which the judge noted the aggravating factors were the multiple attackers, attacks to the head, and the extensive injuries.
She did not accept the Crown’s submission of victim vulnerability, or that it was an unprovoked attack.
“In my view... it was not an unprovoked attack, nor was it pre-mediated, although it was ongoing,” said Judge Mason.
“I do not consider that to be an aggravating factor, particularly when the complainant was the initial aggressor and he was followed back.”
Judge Mason adopted a starting point of 26 months’ imprisonment, and the defendants were allowed a 20% discount for pleading guilty.
Reparation of $1152 was sought and was to be shared across the three defendants.
Laurence was sentenced to 10 months’ home detention, with six months’ post-detention conditions.
Sparham was sentenced to 17 months’ imprisonment, after an uplift for offending while parole was applied, but was also given discounts for his background, prospects of rehabilitation, and remorse.
He offered to pay $2500 emotional harm reparation, and the judge ordered that to be paid within 48 hours.
He was currently serving another term of imprisonment, on unrelated matters, and was granted leave to apply for home detention once that sentence was complete.
The third defendant’s sentencing was adjourned until Friday at 11am, for reasons that can’t be reported.
Hannah Bartlett is a Tauranga-based Open Justice reporter at NZME. She previously covered court and local government for the Nelson Mail, and before that was a radio reporter at Newstalk ZB.