Gun-wielding armed robber jailed
File image. © Andrew Bardwell
An offender deported from Australia for assault has now been jailed for seven years four months for the gunpoint $6000 robbery of a woman bar manager in Hornby.
Eugene Ielua pleaded not guilty and took the case to trial in the Christchurch District Court, but a jury found him guilty of the September 2013 robbery of the Snafu bar.
Since then, 29-year-old Ielua has admitted his involvement and has written a letter of apology to the victim. She was described as “poised and composed” when she gave her evidence at trial but has told of suffering long term psychological harm.
Judge Paul Kellar ordered Ielua to pay her $1000 as emotional harm reparations when he eventually gets out of jail and gets a job.
Crown prosecutor Claire Boshier said that Ielua, armed with a pistol, had terrified the victim to ensure her compliance and he should get little credit for his apology and remorse because it had come after the trial.
Defence counsel Baden Meyer called for a lower sentence and said a non-parole term was not appropriate. He said Ielua was now “acutely aware” of the effects of his offending on the victim.
Two men carried out the robbery as the bar was closing at 10pm on September 1, 2013. The other robber has never been identified.
Judge Kellar agreed not to impose a non-parole term and allowed a six-month reduction for Ielua’s “genuine remorse”. He said the case against him had been overwhelming.
The two men were disguised, and wearing heavy clothing to hide their stature. CCTV footage showed them climbing a fence from Denton Park before the robbery.
The bar was closed while the woman manager counted the takings and the pokie machine money, when they smashed a window with a tomahawk and entered the bar.
Ielua was holding a pistol similar to a police-issue Glock. The pistol has never been found and it is not known if it was real, or loaded. The woman told the trial she had no recollection of it being pointed at her, but security camera footage shows that it was.
Ielua told her: “Give me what I want, and I won’t do anything to hurt you.”
About $6000 was put into a bag, and the woman was then told to take the robbers to the safes. The safe doors were ajar and they were empty, but the men told her to open the drawers inside. She did not have the key for that.
They then shut her in the chiller and closed the door and told her to remain. She stayed for a few minutes and then called the police.
Ielua had pleaded guilty to taking a bank card from a man he was staying with, and attempting to use it to make withdrawals seven times. Only one withdrawal was successful.
Judge Kellar said he was assessed as a medium-to-high risk of further offending.
About the time of the robbery, he had reported struggling financially and being unmotivated to find work. He had found himself in New Zealand with little support after being deported from Australia for an assault conviction. He had left his wife and child behind in Australia at that time, but they had since moved to Auckland.
Category: Focus
Subscribe
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it.
Connect
Connect with us via: