Turia then made his move.
As he approached the station's manager brandishing the knife Turia yelled: "Fill the f**king bag, I don't want to stab you", the Whanganui District Court heard on Thursday.
The manager used a wooden pole to defend himself as Turia advanced while slashing at him with the knife.
His onslaught was short-lived though and Turia quickly turned and ran away empty-handed only to be confronted by a local man who had seen him fleeing the scene.
Police arrested Turia a short time later.
He told officers he needed cash for his baby boy's upcoming second birthday and thought he could onsell stolen cigarettes to raise some money.
Turia appeared before Judge Stephanie Edwards for sentencing on one charge each of assault with intent to rob and dangerous driving.
His grandmother Dame Tariana - a former Associate Corrections Minister - and his wider whānau were in court for the hearing, defence lawyer Jamie Waugh said.
Open Justice has attempted to seek comment from Dame Tariana and her grandson.
An aunty told Judge Edwards that Turia could be a handful but it didn't mean they didn't love him.
She said Turia had always been supported during his life.
"We love him but we have a long way to go."
Waugh told the court Turia was on the cusp of two different worlds before his birth, one of systemic deprivation and one of privilege which led to him being told he wasn't a real Māori.
Within days of Turia being locked up on remand, he was confronted with the reality of where his life was heading when someone called out "hey cuz when did you get here".
Waugh described it as a wake-up call for Turia and made him focus on his own son and not want to have to explain why he had to visit him in prison.
Turia had changed in the eight months since his foray into crime, Waugh said, and had even spent time on electronically monitored bail which included a 24-hour curfew at Dame Tariana's home.
Waugh sought a community-based sentence for Turia which took into account the strict bail conditions he had to comply with.
Crown prosecutor Jack Liu withdrew the dangerous driving charge but maintained a custodial sentence was required as society was terrified by armed robberies.
Liu said there was a high degree of premeditation and argued 400 hours of community work could be imposed if Turia avoided a custodial sentence.
"Serving the community can assist in paying back the harm he has caused."
Judge Edwards detailed why the manager had suffered no physical injuries in the attempted robbery he was upset knowing Turia, a long-time customer who used to live just down the road from him, was behind the crime.
She said the rising number of armed robberies was causing much concern in the community.
While Turia had enjoyed a good upbringing, supported by whanau, there were features in his background which had impacted his mental wellbeing and contributed to his offending Judge Edwards said but didn't go into great detail about what they were.
One incident when Turia was aged eight had had a profound impact which resulted in him using drugs to self-medicate, she said.
Turia had expressed a commitment to addressing his drug abuse and undertaking trauma counselling so he could help himself affect long-term change.
In a letter of apology to his victim, Turia described his own behaviour as disrespectful, irresponsible, and unsafe and acknowledged he was acting selfishly without thought.
Judge Edwards began with a sentence starting point of four years' imprisonment but after discounts for his early guilty plea, genuine remorse, and previous good character it was reduced to 20 months' imprisonment.
Because the sentence was below the two-year threshold making it eligible for home detention, Turia was ultimately given a 10-month home detention sentence.
That was as far as Judge Edwards would go, however, and she wouldn't consider further reducing it to another form of community-based sentence because it wouldn't address the drug use or trauma counselling Turia required.
