Teen sentenced to prison for sexual violence on rugby field

A TEENAGER who violated an incapacitated woman on a Dunedin rugby field has been jailed for more than three years.

Hoepo HolmesHaweturi (19) appeared in the Dunedin District Court this week after pleading guilty to a charge of sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection.

Judge Michael Turner detailed the victim’s statement, in which she described the enormous impact on her mental health and her ability to care for her child.

The woman said that after the incident she had turned to alcohol and drugs to deal with the painful memories of February 9 last year.

Police were unable to contact her for an update before Wednesday’s sentencing and she was thought to have left the region.

HolmesHaweturi met the victim and her boyfriend in central Dunedin on the night of the attack and offered to share two bottles of whisky with them, the court heard.

The trio went to a party in North Dunedin opposite the North Ground and continued drinking.

At the gathering, HolmesHaweturi diverted the conversation to sexual matters and asked the couple whether they would participate in group sex with him.

His requests were refused. Later at the party, the teenager approached another woman and offered to ‘‘donate sperm to her and give her a baby’’.

He pulled her by the wrist into a nearby bedroom, but she escaped.

By 9.30pm, people had spilled outside and the victim became separated from her boyfriend. HolmesHaweturi moved in. People reported to police hearing the woman — who was naked from the waist down — crying and screaming, and they saw the defendant forcing himself on her on the field.

When officers arrived, the victim was still screaming and was so intoxicated she had to be assisted to the patrol vehicle.

She was later stretchered into the hospital where a forensic examination took place.

DNA belonging to HolmesHaweturi was detected, but he told police at the time he had simply been helping the woman get her pants back on.

Judge Turner highlighted the vulnerability of the victim and elements of premeditation in the defendant’s actions.

Against that was the teen’s background, which the judge said may have had some bearing on the offending.

HolmesHaweturi was one of 13 children and had been introduced to cannabis and alcohol at the age of 11.

His father addressed the court and highlighted his son’s heart problems from an early age, which he believed had contributed to his psychological development.

HolmesHaweturi was sentenced to three years and two months’ imprisonment.