‘Please take a stand,’ pleads bereaved son
Engineer says justice system has changed little since dad’s death in dairy 8 years ago
The son of a West Auckland dairy owner fatally stabbed in his shop eight years ago says his family have been failed by the justice system after another killing, and his father’s death was seemingly in vain.
Shivneel Kumar has penned an open letter to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Justice Minister Kiri Allan urging tougher consequences for repeat youth offenders, who he says are waging war on our communities.
“I ask you, as a helpless son that has lost his father, to the lawmakers of this country, to please take a stand and make a change,” Kumar writes.
“Eight years ago I prayed no other family would have to suffer like we did, hoping my dad’s death would not be in vain, but the system that failed us then, has failed us yet again. Something has to change.”
Arun Kumar, 57, was stabbed to death at his dairy on Railside Ave in Henderson in June 2014.
The 13-year-old attacker was found guilty of manslaughter but not guilty of murdering the father of two, while a 12-year-old accomplice was acquitted. Both were granted permanent name suppression. The older teenager was sentenced to six years in prison, later reduced on appeal, and released on parole in 2017. The fatal blow to Arun’s neck was delivered with such force that it severed an artery and left a knife mark on his vertebrae. Arun’s wife, Anita, tended to her husband as he lay dying and covered in blood.
Shivneel Kumar, a 32-year-old aircraft engineer, told the Herald his family were deeply saddened and shocked to learn of the death last week of Janak Patel, who police say was fatally stabbed during an alleged aggravated robbery at Sandringham’s Rose Cottage Superette.
“The news just took me back to 10 June 2014. It was like it had happened to me and I was reliving that nightmare. It was the same for my mum, my sister and everyone in my family, so it was quite hard for us.
“We were disappointed but also very angry that the government system . . . the nation has allowed this to happen again.”
Patel’s death has sent shock waves through New Zealand, sparking protest action by shop owners and calls for the Government to tackle violent offending following a spate of ram raids, smash-and-grab robberies and serious violent crime.
Kumar’s letter urges the Government to take action to protect communities. “Eight years ago, a 14-yearold ended my father’s life with an army knife over some money in the till and cigarettes at our dairy in Henderson. To my horror and absolute disgust we find history repeating itself with the loss of the life of Mr Patel late last week, a stark reminder that not enough action has been taken to prevent this again.”
New Zealand used to pride itself on its low crime rate and gun safety laws, but the spike in ram raids and number of repeat youth offenders belied those sentiments, Kumar wrote. Law-abiding citizens and business owners continued to be “collateral damage”, with little accountability for the damage wrought on people’s livelihoods.
“Of course there isn’t a silver bullet for this problem and significant resource needs to be added to our community outreach programmes to re-educate, support and give these youth a better chance at life, but we also need to stop making excuses for an unenforced justice system which is slowly but surely making New Zealand a breeding ground for youth crime.”
Since his father’s death, Kumar had been an active member of the Waitākere advisory board, working with police and community groups to find solutions to reduce crime and prevent similar tragedies.
“After Janak Patel’s death last week, it’s apparent that we alone weren’t enough. Time and time again, the solutions fall short.”
Kumar believed the current legal framework was inadequate to address youth crime. “Police’s hands are tied and these kids are back on the streets, with no support and no intention of turning their life around.
“I don’t disagree with providing offenders with restorative support
but that should be along with punishment, not instead of. There needs to be accountability for these actions, if not for youth offenders themselves then for their parents/guardians to ensure they too have a vested interest in these offenders’ whereabouts.”
Shivneel Kumar believed a lack of consequences for serious crime was fuelling an increase in aggravated robbery and ram raids.
“When will enough be enough? How many more innocent lives do we need to lose before we put our
To my horror and absolute disgust we find history repeating itself with the loss of the life of Mr Patel.
Shivneel Kumar
foot down as a nation?” He told the Herald he was speaking publicly because he wanted some good to come from his family’s tragedy.
Asked if he had a message for Patel’s grieving family, he said: “I’d like to tell them it gets easier but it does not. I’m down eight years and it’s just as hard. There’s a bit of time gone past that helps you forget, but that pain is still there and it is every day.
“You can lose yourself physically, emotionally. It just takes over your whole world.
“My advice is just take one day at a time and deal with what’s in front of you. There’s definitely a lot of testing times to come.”
Kumar said he had reached out to Patel’s family with an offer to meet them when they were ready.
“I won’t be able to say much apart from that I understand.”
Three men, aged 34, 36 and 42, have been arrested in connection with the Sandringham incident and are now before the courts.
Kiri Allan said her office was preparing a response to Kumar’s letter and a representative planned to meet him.
She welcomed his ideas and passion, saying Arun Kumar’s death was a tragedy and “I can absolutely understand why he is frustrated”.
“As a Government we cannot stop senseless violence like what happened to Mr Kumar’s shop in 2014, and recently at the Rose Cottage Superette, but we can do more to reduce this kind of offending overall and that is the challenge we are working and investing to address.”
Allan said the Government was taking “immediate action”.
This week it announced a multimillion-dollar package to crack down on retail crime, including greater access to fog cannons, supporting retailers to beef up security and including prolific offenders in a police operation targeting gangs.
Allan said penalties for serious violence offences were significant — up to 14 years for aggravated robbery.
“The Government has not lowered penalties for any criminal offences. International evidence shows us that it is the certainty of response to offending that deters crime, not the size of the penalty imposed. That’s why this Government has invested in police numbers, to ensure that offenders are held accountable.”
The Government had invested in more than 1600 extra police and ramped up crime-reduction programmes, Allan said.