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
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Residential property listings
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Rural
  • 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

Fake medical certificate lands Rotorua man Steven Vili in jail

Samantha Olley
By Samantha Olley
Rotorua Daily Post·
7 Nov, 2019 10:51 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

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

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

    Share this article

Rotorua courthouse. Photo / File

Rotorua courthouse. Photo / File

A man who tried to "outsmart" the court will spend 16-and-a-half months in jail.

Rotorua man Steven Vili faked a medical certificate saying he was in hospital and got his mother to take it to police, when he breached bail.

This afternoon Judge Maree MacKenzie told the Rotorua District Court Vili's case "directly strikes at the heart of the administration of justice".

"I regard this as a significant attack... it was never a very good plan," she said.

"It was premeditated because you went to quite some effort to doctor, if I might put it that way, a medical certificate."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

At 9pm on February 14 police conducted a bail check at his house.

However, police could not find him and entered a breach on Vili's curfew conditions.

On February 18, Vili arranged for his mother to provide a purported medical certificate to the Rotorua police station relating to his breach of bail.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The certificate had Lakes District Health Board letterhead and was a template with blank areas for dates and details, signed by Holy Watson.

It included Vili's name and address and stated he was admitted to Rotorua Hospital for a medical condition on February 14 and that he was discharged the following day.

Rotorua Hospital. Photo / File
Rotorua Hospital. Photo / File

The summary said police were suspicious and conducted checks at the hospital.
Staff confirmed they didn't employ a Holy Watson and they had no record of Vili being admitted to hospital.

This afternoon Vili was cleanshaven and appeared in a black long-sleeve shirt and board shorts.

Discover more

Three wāhine lawyers pave the way for whānau

05 Nov 08:00 PM
New Zealand

Murder trial: 'He told me to say it was cot death'

05 Nov 01:10 AM
New Zealand

Murder trial: Accused offered to give twins away

06 Nov 01:10 AM
New Zealand|crime

'Callous' betrayal: How one worker ripped off his sick boss

08 Nov 01:08 AM

Judge MacKenzie said he "showed little remorse".

"This was an action by you which was deliberate, which you clearly planned... you wanted to outsmart the court and not be remanded in custody."

She said by enlisting the help of his mother he drew her into his "web of deception".

Vili family waved to him briefly as he left the court.

He will serve concurrent sentences for burglary, assaulting a female, unlawfully possessing offensive weapons (a tomahawk and hammer) and possessing a meth pipe.

He was convicted and discharged for a charge of failing to appear in court.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Vili pleaded guilty to all offences in September.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

live
Rotorua Daily Post

Ham radio distress post was hoax, 50 people evacuated, wild weather clean-up begins

11 Jul 09:42 PM
Rotorua Daily Post

'Merry hell' in Mamaku: Village held 'to ransom' by hoons

11 Jul 06:00 PM
Rotorua Daily Post

Bay home crowd rallies behind netball's Magic

11 Jul 05:00 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Ham radio distress post was hoax, 50 people evacuated, wild weather clean-up begins
live

Ham radio distress post was hoax, 50 people evacuated, wild weather clean-up begins

11 Jul 09:42 PM

The North Island is expected to get off to a wet start this morning, with lingering rain.

'Merry hell' in Mamaku: Village held 'to ransom' by hoons

'Merry hell' in Mamaku: Village held 'to ransom' by hoons

11 Jul 06:00 PM
Bay home crowd rallies behind netball's Magic

Bay home crowd rallies behind netball's Magic

11 Jul 05:00 PM
Tearful hunter admits shooting and killing friend

Tearful hunter admits shooting and killing friend

11 Jul 05:00 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

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 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP