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RNZ News
5 days ago
- RNZ News
Jailed Facebook fraudster Monaro Kerr-Wilson has more prison time added to sentence
By Belinda Feek, Open Justice reporter of Monaro Kerr-Wilson, 21, in the Hamilton District Court at an earlier hearing. Photo: Open Justice / Belinda Feek A Facebook fraudster already behind bars for scamming people out of $30,000 worth of property has been given more jail time for another con. In February, Monaro Kerr-Wilson was sentenced to 22 months' imprisonment after he "bought" two vehicles, one for $20,000 and the other for $10,000, from people on Marketplace in October last year. But he didn't really buy the cars. He used a fake screenshot from his bank account to convince the owners the money had gone through and then took the vehicles. This week, he returned to Hamilton District Court, this time by audio-visual link from prison, to be sentenced on another charge of obtaining by deception relating to a third vehicle. In his latest scheme, the 21-year-old was operating with a co-offender. The pair contacted the victim last year, who was selling his red 2005 Holden Commodore on Facebook Marketplace for $12,000. They met at a service station in Hampton Downs and Kerr-Wilson agreed to pay the $12,000 through an online bank transfer. The victim invited Kerr-Wilson to test drive the car, to which he said, "no", while the co-offender gave a name that she used in "multiple other Facebook scams". The co-offender completed "what appeared to be" a genuine online payment in front of the victim, and then sent him a screenshot of it. After the victim thought he'd been paid, he handed over the keys and left. However, the victim did not received the $12,000. Police found Kerr-Wilson driving the victim's stolen Holden a few hours later. When questioned by officers, he said he had "no idea" about the theft allegation. However, at the latest sentencing, Kerr-Wilson's counsel, Rhiannon Scott, told Judge Noel Cocurullo the latest offence was "effectively a wash-up charge" as it happened about the same time as his previous offending. The difference was that he wasn't charged with the third offence until this year. That meant Judge Cocurullo couldn't sentence him afresh, leaving him to determine what sentence Kerr-Wilson would have been given in February if sentenced on all three charges. Scott suggested an additional prison sentence of two to four months, which prompted the judge to note that if Kerr-Wilson had been jailed on all charges earlier, he would likely already be out of prison. If a person is jailed for two years or less, they are eligible for release after serving half of their sentence. However, if they are sentenced to more than that much jail time, they are eligible for parole after serving one-third of the sentence. "It's actually counted against him because if it was there at the time of sentencing he might have tipped outside the 24 months, with eligibility at one-third ... he probably would have got something like two years and two months, maybe a bit longer, which means after about nine months he could have been paroled," the judge noted. Kerr-Wilson was jailed for an additional four months and ordered to pay the latest victim $500, which would go towards his insurance claim. This spate of offending is not the first for Kerr-Wilson. In 2022, when he was aged 18, he was sentenced on 15 charges for similar offending. This story was first published by the New Zealand Herald .
RNZ News
17-07-2025
- RNZ News
Drink-driving mother crashes at 100km/h, injures two others, but half bottle of wine stays in console
By Belinda Feek, Open Justice reporter of Holly Pattison, 36, leaves the Hamilton District Court on Wednesday after being sentenced to home detention for crashing her car and injuring two others while over the legal blood alcohol limit. Photo: Belinda Feek After strapping her daughter into a booster seat and putting a half-drunk bottle of wine in the centre console, Holly Pattison set off in her car to Napier. But the 36-year-old barely made it out of Hamilton before she strayed over the centre line and crashed into another vehicle. The six-year-old girl suffered critical injuries, while the driver of the other car was off work for a "considerable" amount of time. Pattison appeared in the Hamilton District Court on Wednesday for sentencing on two charges of driving causing injury with an excess blood alcohol level and ill-treatment of a child after the crash on 15 December last year. Her lawyer, Catriona Kunac, managed to persuade Judge Glen Marshall not to send Pattison to prison. It was about 9.15pm when Pattison was heading south on Cambridge Road, between the suburb of Hillcrest and the Waikato Expressway. Pattison had her daughter in the front passenger seat strapped into a booster seat. At the same time, a 19-year-old man driving north exited the expressway on to Cambridge Rd, travelling about 75km/h. Pattison failed to negotiate a sweeping right-hand corner and veered across into the centre lane. The other driver unsuccessfully tried to avoid the crash by swerving but the cars collided, suffering irreparable damage. When inspected, Pattison's speedometer was locked at 100km/h and a half-empty bottle of wine was in the centre cup holder. She returned a blood alcohol level of 183mg. The legal blood alcohol limit is 50mg. The child suffered a lacerated liver, broken collarbone, broken humerus bone, and a head injury and was taken to Starship children's hospital in a critical condition. The other driver suffered a fractured vertebra and concussion, and was off work for a "considerable amount of time". Pattison admitted she had been drinking and said she was driving to Napier, but did not say why her daughter was in the front passenger seat. Kunac said the child had since made a "full recovery", while Pattison would soon have surgery on a lower vertebrae injured in the crash. She had also done an initial assessment with Care NZ and so far done 100 volunteer hours at a Hamilton charity. Pattison was also keen to pay $1500 in reparation to the other driver. "You of all people, Miss Pattison, would realise that this could have ended up far more tragically than it did. "Everyone could have died in that crash or suffered more severe injuries, which potentially affected them for life. "I think you have now come to the conclusion that your drinking was out of control and aspects of your life were perhaps out of control." Judge Marshall sentenced Pattison to nine months' home detention, ordered her to pay $1500 in emotional harm reparation, disqualified her from driving for 28 days until she had an alcohol interlock device installed and pay police and medical costs of $195.34. * This story originally appeared in the New Zealand Herald .
RNZ News
10-06-2025
- RNZ News
Hamilton homicide: Man admits murdering baby, trying to kill a woman and child
By By Belinda Feek, Open Justice reporter of Photo: RNZ / Liu Chen A 34-year-old man has admitted murdering a baby and trying to kill a woman and another child in a New Year's Day attack this year. The Hamilton infant died at a home on 1 January , and an older child and a woman, understood to be their mother, were also attacked. NZME understands the woman was stabbed in the neck. This morning, a man reappeared in the High Court at Hamilton, where he pleaded guilty to murder and two charges of attempted murder. Defence counsel Richard Barnsdale made an application for his client's name to be permanently suppressed. Justice Kiri Tahana scheduled a date for that application to be heard in August and ordered interim suppression to continue. Crown Solicitor Rebecca Mann said she would likely file an application for permanent suppression of the victims' names. After reading reports that the defendant was not mentally impaired , Justice Tahana convicted the man and remanded him in custody for sentencing in September. Photo: RNZ / Liu Chen While the media was declined a copy of the court's summary of facts on Tuesday, due to issues around identifying victims, NZME spoke to several witnesses at the time of the incident. As police carried out their scene examination at the victims' home and another house on the street, blood was seen smeared on the walls of the porch and the front door frame of the second house. The residents at the property declined to comment, but others said the offender was stopped by police dogs nearby. He had been jumping fences, moving between properties, trying to escape police, they said. One local resident who said he was one of the first on scene, said: "I knew the baby was gone... it was lifeless". He saw a man dragging a woman, bleeding from the neck, across the street. "I was trying to look for [the alleged offender] to make sure the kids were okay because we know that they had kids there," he said. The last time he saw the injured woman, she couldn't breathe properly but was speaking. Another neighbour said she and others helped keep two uninjured children safe, wrapping them in blankets. "[One child] was playing with a doll, and she mimicked what she saw. The trauma that poor child has to live with." Near where the man was found, large pools of dried blood could be seen on the footpath. The incident brought many neighbours to tears. * This story originally appeared in the here New Zealand Herald .
RNZ News
29-04-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
The forensic accountant and the ‘red flags' he found in alleged theft probe
By Belinda Feek, Open Justice reporter of Hamilton District Court Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly A businessman was allegedly paying himself fees for professional services that he was not qualified to receive, and without the knowledge of the company directors. That man is now before the courts fighting three charges of theft by a person in a special relationship and obtaining by deception between 2015 and 2018. Forensic accountant Dennis Parsons on Tuesday told a jury in the Hamilton District Court that he discovered a number of "red flags" when he went through the company's books, which the 73-year-old defendant was in charge of. In total, the Hamilton man, whose name and identifying details are suppressed, is alleged to have unlawfully obtained $111,079.80 and spent some of that money on personal items, including weedkiller and Hush Puppies shoes. The name of the company he was formerly associated with also has interim name suppression. On day two of the trial, Parsons continued giving evidence, detailing the report he compiled for the company's board of directors in 2018. He initially did one report, covering a 13-month period, but given what he discovered he was asked by the board to extend the ambit of his investigation to another year. Parsons was initially contacted by one of the company directors to investigate because of "alleged misappropriation" by the defendant. He was able to put the allegations into three categories: money that had vanished by way of cash cheque, the defendant's personal loan, and the personal expenditure. Asked by Crown solicitor Tom Sutcliffe if he recognised any red flags, Parsons said he wouldn't expect to see brokerage being charged by the company. "Because under the Credit Contract and Consumer Finance Act, the creditor [company] ... can charge reasonable fees, documentation fees, search fees, and can charge brokerage ... but only charge these fees that it has paid out to a third party. "Because there was no broker, they couldn't charge a fee for paying itself." He said most of the transactions were from customers who either walked in or were refinancing existing loans. "So there's no broker involved in these transactions. "So it's my understanding they were not entitled to charge these at any rate. "That was the first red flag." The second was when he discovered the cheques were made out to cash. "Quite simply, you need to be able to account for who you pay the money to. "If it goes into a cash currency we don't know where it's gone after it has been cashed at the bank. "So if [defendant] cashed it, he had $600 in his hand and we don't know what happened to that." The only way it could be traced is if the cash was being put back into the company bank account, but that didn't happen, he said. "There was no record of what happened to the cash," Parsons said. During his investigation, Parsons said he spoke with the broker used by the defendant. Parsons said the broker told him he didn't receive his share of some of the broker fees. Parsons also discovered broker forms that had the broker's name on them but not his signature. When asked by Sutcliffe what his concerns were about the cash cheques, Parsons said the cheques could have just been made out in the name of the broker. Sutcliffe then asked him to justify the defendant's alleged deposits. "$600 is banked as cash by [defendant] into his account. Then he's used broker fees to reduce his debt." All up, the defendant is alleged to have reduced his personal loan by $18,600 by the various cash deposits, he said. "You would expect to see reasons for each of these credits," Parsons said. His investigation also uncovered purchases of weedkiller and sprayer worth $182.56, a $140 smoke alarm, a $849 vacuum cleaner, Hush Puppies and shoe care kit, Wet and Forget Tiger Paw Shower Witch cleaner worth $229, and a Sunbeam "big fill" toastie machine, charged to either the company's office or general expenses. He also got his personal car cleaned at Trim Effects Waikato, worth $172.50, noting that it had been "damaged by rubbish". The man says he has done nothing wrong. "My defence is quite simple. I have committed no crime," he told the jury on Monday. "I'm simply carrying the can for a poorly governed company." The man said a "disconnect" had developed between himself and the board of directors. The trial is expected to last about two weeks. - This story was first published on New Zealand Herald .
Otago Daily Times
21-04-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Colombian refugee jailed for repeatedly sexually assaulting teen
By Belinda Feek WARNING: This story contains details of sexual assault. After a teenager reported she had been repeatedly sexually assaulted by a group of men, one of them urged her to tell police that they were all innocent. 'Do everything possible I can't go to jail, actually do [victim] otherwise I'm going to get in serious trouble this isn't a joke man' [sic], Elias Tenorio-Quinones texted the then 15-year-old. But the teenager stayed strong, and last week in the Hamilton District Court the now 23-year-old Colombian refugee was jailed for two years and eight months. However, as he has been in custody for the past 21 months, he will soon be eligible for parole. Tenorio-Quinones is now the last of three offenders to be sentenced for the sexual assaults that occurred around Hamilton, including Hamilton Lake and Callum Brae Park, in 2022. Last year, CJ Sampiano, 20, was sentenced on three charges of sexual connection with a young person to 10 months' home detention and ordered to pay $5000 in emotional harm reparation. And their 20-year-old co-offender, who can't be named for legal reasons, was sentenced to six months' community detention, 12 months' supervision, and ordered to pay $1500 in emotional harm reparation on four of the same charges. Tenorio-Quinones got the most severe sentence as he admitted 10 charges; nine of sexual connection with a young person and one of attempting to pervert the course of justice. The court heard that between September 30, 2022, and October 17, 2022, Tenorio-Quinones met up with the victim numerous times and gave her cannabis before engaging in sex or sexual behaviour. At times, the victim tried to push Tenorio-Quinones off her, said 'no', or felt pressured, and, on two occasions, he filmed her having sex with his 20-year-old co-offender. After being arrested and bailed, Tenorio-Quinones tried to convince the victim to go to the police to report her friends for spreading 'bad information' about him and his co-offenders, and to also say he never forced her to have sex. 'A rollercoaster of emotions' In her statement, the victim's mother told Judge Philip Crayton that her daughter was vulnerable when she met the men. Soon after, her daughter changed. She became 'very emotional' and prone to 'blow up in extreme rages' and got involved in 'very risky behaviours'. '[She] has been on a rollercoaster of emotions, and her journey will be a long one,' the mother said. 'The sexual assaults have derailed [her] progress in life ... but she is improving.' Tenorio-Quinones took advantage of the victim and had also shown no remorse for his actions, she said. Tenorio-Quinones' counsel, Joon Yi, said his client was genuinely remorseful and a letter he had penned showed insight into what he had done. He denied there was any victim-blaming, saying he was 'simply explaining the background as to how he got to know the victim'. Crown solicitor Lexie Glasier appreciated Tenorio-Quinones had no previous convictions, but said he was still too young to qualify for any previous good character discount. 'He's not even had the opportunity to form a character that is good. 'These matters indicate he is not someone of good character.' She said he had also made comments in his pre-sentence report that appeared to blame his co-offenders, that he was influenced by them, and 'intoxicated mainly by marijuana'. His remorse letter also had elements of victim-blaming and minimisation of his actions, she submitted. 'You need to own your actions' Judge Crayton told Tenorio-Quinones he had impacted the victim's life 'in many different ways'. 'It's likely that will be lifelong, and it has been life-changing. 'You need to not only recognise it, you need to own it. 'She bears no responsibility for your actions and the actions of your friends. 'They are yours.' Judge Crayton declined to issue any previous good character discount. He had been sent 'a whole raft' of character references, many from family, who described Tenorio-Quinones as 'quiet, polite, and respectful'. 'And I'm sure you are. 'I'm sure that that element of your character is what gained the trust of your victim. 'It really couldn't be said that you are a person of positive character.' The judge accepted the letter of remorse demonstrated some insight, and allowed 3% discount. He gave a further 5% for background factors and applied credit for his guilty pleas and youth. From a starting point of four years and six months, Judge Crayton jailed Tenorio-Quinones for two years and eight months. SEXUAL HARM Where to get help: If it's an emergency and you feel that you or someone else is at risk, call 111. If you've ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone, contact Safe to Talk confidentially, any time 24/7:• Call 0800 044 334• Text 4334 • Email support@ • For more info or to web chat visit Alternatively contact your local police station - click here for a list. If you have been sexually assaulted, remember it's not your fault.
