Sandringham dairy attack: Pair charged with robbery appear in court

A man charged with robbing the Auckland dairy where worker Janak Patel was allegedly murdered last week was back in court on Monday, along with another man on a fresh robbery charge.

Police on Sunday night announced they had charged a third man with robbery in relation to the Wednesday night incident in which Janak Patel was allegedly stabbed to death.

His charge came after a 34-year-old man appeared in court on Saturday charged with murder and aggravated robbery, along with a 42-year-old charged with robbing the dairy.

The third man to be charged is aged 36 and lives in Wiri, court documents show. Police allege he robbed the dairy of a cash register, vapes and butane lighters, the same charge they laid against the 42-year-old, carrying a maximum prison term of 10 years. Neither man is charged with murder or aggravated robbery.

Appearing before a JP on Saturday at the Auckland District Court, the 34-year-old charged with murder and the 42-year-old on the robbery charge were both remanded in custody without plea and granted interim name suppression.

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The 42-year-old’s case was called again in the same court on Monday, before Judge Grant Fraser.

His lawyer did not seek bail and the man was again remanded in custody until December 14 at the Auckland High Court, when his case will be called at the same time as the man accused of murder.

Judge Fraser granted a continuation of the interim order of his name suppression.

The third, newly charged man was granted interim name suppression in his brief appearance. He was remanded in custody ahead of a bail hearing set down for December 5 in the Auckland District Court.

None of the trio have entered a plea yet.

Flowers and tributes outside the Rose Cottage Superette in Sandringham where shop worker Janek Patel died on Wednesday night in an alleged armed robbery. Photo / George Block

Murder accused was deported

The man accused of murdering a Sandringham dairy worker was deported from Australia earlier this year, the Herald on Sunday revealed.

After he was deported, he wound up in emergency housing in South Auckland.

The grounds for his deportation from Australia cannot be reported for legal reasons.

The man, 34, is accused of killing dairy worker Janak Patel on Wednesday night at the Rose Cottage Superette in Fowlds Ave, Sandringham. The newly married man was working in the shop while its owners were out of the country. He suffered stab wounds and died shortly after calling for emergency help.

Patel’s funeral was on Sunday evening, attended by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.

Janak Patel, 34, was allegedly fatally stabbed while working at the Rose Cottage Superette in Sandringham. Photo / Supplied

Patel, who was fatally stabbed during an alleged robbery at the Rose Cottage Superette last Wednesday, was farewelled at a service at Anns Funeral Home in Wiri on Sunday.

The 34-year-old’s wife, parents, sisters and other family were among the mourners, as was Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern who hugged Patel’s widow Vijeta during the event.

The master of ceremonies at the service, Mitesh Dhanji, said the couple had a “dream to run their own business”.

They had only relocated from Hamilton to Auckland last week to run the Sandringham dairy while its owners were overseas.

Dhanji said he hoped Patel’s death would bring change for future generations.