Man jailed for sexual offences

Photo/File

The irreparable harm Lynne Paul Kurei did to three young girls has led to him spending an indefinite term behind bars.

In the High Court at Rotorua yesterday Justice Timothy Brewer sentenced Kurei, 45, of Rotorua, to preventive detention.

He also jailed him for four-and-a-half years for the violation one of his victims when he was 14 because at the time he would have been too young to be eligible for preventive detention.

That sentence is concurrent with the indefinite term.

Rotorua Crown solicitor Amanda Gordon, pointed out Kurei had offended while on parole and was under intensive supervision for similar offences. Justice Brewer told Kurei preventive detention was for the protection of the community.

"Preventive detention doesn't mean that the keys have been thrown away forever, it is not a punishment, it is a precaution. If you can change you will be released, if you cannot change you will not be released, your future is in your hands," he told Kurei.

He set a minimum non-parole period of seven-and-a-half years.

Kurei pleaded guilty in August to 11 sex-related charges involving pre-pubescent girls including rape, indecent assault and doing indecent acts on them.

Seven took place in Rotorua, two in Taneatua and two in Opotiki.

Charges involving one girl were dated between February 1984 and December the following year.

Offending against another victim took place between January and December 1999, another set of charges stretched from 2003 to 2009. One of the 1984-85 rapes was in a wharenui on a marae where Kurei also sexually violated his victim.

Justice Brewer said the girl had gone there alone because she was unwell.

On another occasion he'd followed a victim into a toilet, where he raped her. Victim impact statements were not read out in court, but the judge said they painted pictures of Kurei's victims suffering emotional and psychological trauma, insecurities, low self-esteem, flash-backs, nightmares and a lack of trust in men.

One said she felt dirty, used and abused. Another felt insecure about her body image. Two of the victims were comforted by family and victim support staff as they wept in the public gallery.

Ms Gordon said a third was too unwell to attend.

The judge said there was a level of planning and premeditation in Kurei's offending.

"It is clear to me you engineered these victims so you could have opportunities to be alone with them; there are elements of grooming in your conduct," he said.

A psychologist and a clinical psychiatrist had evaluated Kurei as being at an elevated risk of re-offending.

The judge said Kurei didn't have any mental health illness but had issues with alcohol and cannabis and had been sexually abused as a child.

Defence lawyer, Martin Hine, said Kurei had asked him to convey his deep regret to each of his victims.
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Kurei sentenced on 11 charges involving three victims.
Victim 1:
Doing an indecent act on a girl under 12
Indecent assault
Sexual violation by rape
Victim 2:
Three of sexual violation by rape
Three of sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection
Victim 3:
Two of rape