Two jailed for helping conceal evidence
Two people have been jailed for helping someone conceal evidence about a crime.
Pauline Ngapiki Herewini, 32, and Anthony Richard Dawson, 28, were charged with being an accessory after the fact in a crime, and Herewini was also charged with assault. They had pleaded guilty.
In the High Court at Christchurch, Justice Gerald Nation suppressed the nature of the crime involved in the accessory charges.
Crown prosecutor Claire Boshier said both Herewini and Dawson provided significant assistance in the crime.
Both were on bail at the time of the offending, and Herewini is in custody now for unrelated convictions.
Defence counsel for Herewini, Tony Garrett, said the assault she had admitted was not a physical application of force, but information she conveyed was of assistance in the greater picture.
The common denominator in the offending was methamphetamine, and everybody was involved in it, he said.
There was hope for potential rehabilitation and she had used her time in prison well, he said.
Dawson’s defence counsel, Kerry Cook, said Dawson had had an opportunity to go to the police, but methamphetamine clouded his judgement.
Dawson had a positive pre-sentence report and was not beyond help, he said.
Justice Nation said Dawson was using methamphetamine daily, had adopted a criminal lifestyle, and on this day he had acted without thinking.
He had five previous convictions for minor offending, but was remorseful and wanted to help others abusing methamphetamine.
He sentenced him to 20 months’ prison, and acknowledged Dawson’s withdrawn request for a home detention sentence, telling him he would not have granted it.
He said Herewini had 117 prior convictions for dishonesty and two for violence. She wanted to attend a restorative justice meeting, and had completed courses, including education, while in prison.
He sentenced her to 18 months in prison, starting from when her present sentence finished.
Category: News
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