Rotorua Daily Post
  • Rotorua Daily Post home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Lifestyle
  • Sport

Locations

  • Tauranga
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales

Weather

  • Rotorua
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Former Rotorua man sent to jail for raping girl

Matthew Martin
Matthew Martin
Senior reporter, Rotorua Daily Post·Rotorua Daily Post·
21 Sep, 2012 04:48 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article

A former Rotorua man has been sentenced to six years and six months in jail after being found guilty of repeatedly raping and indecently assaulting a young girl in Rotorua between 1966 and 1976.

Marama Rameka, 68, a sickness beneficiary of Tauranga appeared in the High Court at Rotorua yesterday after being found guilty in July by a jury of three charges of indecently assaulting a child under 12 and two charges of rape, all relating to the same victim. All the charges were representative, meaning the offending happened more than once.

Rameka, formerly of Rotorua, was found not guilty on the sixth charge - an alleged rape in the early 1990s.

The case ran for six days with interpreters mouthing and signing the proceedings to Rameka, who is deaf and has only one leg.

Supporters of both the victim and Rameka were involved in a verbal altercation before proceedings began yesterday leading to court security staff removing a man who had come to support Rameka.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Before sentencing, the victim read her victim impact statement to the court, saying Rameka's actions had ruined her life and had led her to abuse drugs and alcohol and had forced her into prostitution.

"Marama took my childhood and my teenage years away from me. I felt very isolated, unloved and alone as a child. I didn't have anyone to turn to. He took away my innocence and, in fact, he ruined my life," she said.

Rameka's lawyer Jonothan Briscoe said a prison sentence of five years would be appropriate.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"The issue for Mr Rameka is his ongoing health problems ... but in reality that is the only credit that can be given to him," Mr Briscoe said.

While sentencing Rameka, Justice Paul Heath said the maximum sentence for rape in the 1970s was 14 years and since the offending took place during that time the more recent maximum of 20 years in jail could not be applied.

Justice Heath also took into account Rameka's previous conviction for indecent assault in 1997.

"While the victim must take some responsibility for her life choices, I accept that the drug and alcohol addiction from which she has suffered does have connection with the feelings of worthlessness that she experienced as a result of the continued sexual abuse that you heaped upon her," Justice Heath said.

"Despite the jury's verdicts you continue to deny the offending ... as a result you express no remorse ... a prison sentence is inevitable."

Justice Heath said the only mitigating factors considered while imposing the sentence were Rameka's age and ill-health.

Save
    Share this article

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Rotorua Daily Post

Eastern region rescues soar as beach swimmers ignore flags, patrol hours

01 Jan 07:39 AM
Premium
Rotorua Daily Post

An epic, wild 218 days: Meet the family of six who walked the length of NZ

01 Jan 04:06 AM
Rotorua Daily Post

Positive night: Bay party hotspots busy but largely well-behaved

01 Jan 12:34 AM

Sponsored

The Bay’s secret advantage

07 Dec 09:54 PM
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Eastern region rescues soar as beach swimmers ignore flags, patrol hours
Rotorua Daily Post

Eastern region rescues soar as beach swimmers ignore flags, patrol hours

Surf lifeguards have carried out 93 rescues since October 25 in the Eastern region.

01 Jan 07:39 AM
Premium
Premium
An epic, wild 218 days: Meet the family of six who walked the length of NZ
Rotorua Daily Post

An epic, wild 218 days: Meet the family of six who walked the length of NZ

01 Jan 04:06 AM
Positive night: Bay party hotspots busy but largely well-behaved
Rotorua Daily Post

Positive night: Bay party hotspots busy but largely well-behaved

01 Jan 12:34 AM


The Bay’s secret advantage
Sponsored

The Bay’s secret advantage

07 Dec 09:54 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Rotorua Daily Post e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Rotorua Daily Post
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2026 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP