Men plead guilty to sexual offences committed as 16yearolds

AUCKLAND: Two men who were arrested in 2020 as a result of alleged sexual offending seven years earlier that resulted in a national scandal have pleaded guilty just days before their trial was scheduled to begin.

The men, who continue to have name suppression, appeared in the Auckland District Court yesterday as their lawyers entered the pleas on their behalf.

One of the defendants pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual connection with a young person aged 1216 while the other pleaded guilty to one count of the same charge.

Police have alleged the offending against one victim happened from late 2012 to early 2013 and involved a girl aged 14 at the time. Both men were 16 at the time.

The duo were among several suspects who were investigated by police in 2014.

Five girls made formal complaints to detectives, but no charges were laid until 2020.

The two defendants first appeared in court in December 2020 and were immediately granted name suppression.

Police filed a second charge months later, after they said another victim who had made previous complaints against the men expressed a desire to be part of the prosecution.

Judge John Bergseng approved a request by the men’s lawyers not to enter convictions until their sentencing date.

A hearing is still scheduled to take place next week to argue the summary of facts about the charges.

Ron Mansfield QC argued during a name suppression hearing in early 2021 that if his client had been charged as a 16yearold instead of eight years later, he would have automatically had name suppression.

‘‘The delay is not his fault,’’ he said at the time.

Lawyers for both men said their clients had been harassed and threatened in the past as a result of previous media coverage. —