Man guilty of violent assault on female victim

A Taranaki man has been found guilty of a violent attack on a woman he also indecently assaulted.

On Friday, Derek Manihera Stubbings was convicted of nine charges related to a December 6, 2017 attack after the jury, who heard evidence in his New Plymouth District Court trial, found him guilty on all counts.

Stubbings, who had pleaded not guilty to three charges of male assaults female, two of indecently assaulting a female over the age of 16, and one each of assaulting a child, threatening to kill and assault with a blunt instrument, had faced trial since Monday.

The court heard how following days of tension between the defendant and the victim it boiled over into a violent encounter when Stubbings punched her, threatened to hit her with a set of knuckle dusters and sexually abused her.

In his defence of the charges, Stubbings’ lawyer Turitea Bolstad said the defendant had not been at the house when the violence was alleged to have taken place and there was no medical evidence of an assault.

The jury, comprising of eight women and four men, heard evidence from 14 Crown witnesses.

On Thursday, the closing submissions were made by Bolstad and prosecutor Cherie Clarke before Judge Gregory Hikaka summed up the case and the jury began its deliberations.

Yesterday, the forewoman told the New Plymouth District Court the jury had found Stubbings guilty of all charges.

Following the verdicts, Judge Hikaka thanked the jury members for their service and discharged them.

The judge convicted Stubbings and issued a first strike warning against him and the defendant was remanded into custody to reappear for sentencing on April 30.

Bolstad indicated to the judge she would request a cultural report be canvassed ahead of Stubbings’ sentencing hearing. She also indicated that the defendant was interested in meeting with the victim at a restorative justice meeting.

Clarke said in the interim she would talk with the victim, who gave evidence at the trial, to see if she was interested in the face-to-face meeting with Stubbings.