Life in jail for killer of stop-go worker
Rochai Taiaroa chokes up as she recounts the final moments of her father’s life.
‘‘One of the most difficult images I have to deal with comes from knowing that when Dad saw the gun pointed at him, he would have thought of us. I know he wasn’t worried for his safety, he would have been worried for us.’’
George Charles Taiaroa, 67, was shot dead in March 2013 as he operated a stopgo sign in Atiamuri.
The man found guilty of his murder, Quinton Paul Winders, was sentenced yesterday to a minimum of 17 years in prison by Justice Kit Toogood at the High Court in Rotorua.
Rochai read her victim impact statement to the court.
She was supported by family in the public gallery.
To one side of the Taiaroa family sat the Winders family.
‘‘There are moments in time that change your life,’’ Rochai read.
‘‘People never forget what they were doing or where they going in those instances.
‘‘For me, the 19th of March 2013 was one such moment. I was at the gym when a news bulletin came on the TV stating that a stop-go worker had been killed in Tokoroa.
‘‘My first thought was, thank god Dad wasn’t in Tokoroa.
‘‘My second thought was that I really felt for the victim’s family.
‘‘Returning home, I thought nothing more about it until I received a phone call to say that Dad had been killed,’’ she said, weeping.
Winders, 45, sat quietly in the dock while the statement was read, glancing up only twice. His bright-blue tie, blue shirt and jacket were cleanly ironed.
His lawyer, Jonathan Temm, said Winders still denies murdering George Taiaroa.
‘‘[Winders’] instructions to me are maintained that since arrested, throughout the trial and following the verdict, the defendant maintains his position that he was not involved in any way in the death of George Taiaroa,’’ Temm said.
‘‘He does not accept the police investigation was fair or lawful.
‘‘He doesn’t accept that was fair or balanced – the evidence produced in the trial process.
‘‘He had no reason to kill [Taiaroa] and the Crown’s suggestion that it [stemmed] from a traffic accident is a gross fabrication . . .’’
Temm asked Justice Toogood to consider a maximum 10-year sentence for Winders.
Crown prosecutor Amanda Gordon asked for a period of 15 to 16 years.
Justice Toogood imposed a 17-year non parole period, addressing Winders directly when saying: ‘‘It was an entirely unprovoked attack on an unsuspecting man.
‘‘You denied and continue to deny you are Mr Taiaroa’s killer. The jury’s verdict means they were satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that you were – and I agree.’’
Winders’ sister, Miranda Dallow, addressed media outside the court.
She said all in the family were saddened by the lack of professionalism shown by the New Zealand Police.
‘‘The way that they have handled this case, based off circumstantial evidence and incriminating and framing an innocent man who has never met George Taiaroa and could not even identify George prior to this case.
‘‘Quinton Winders is an innocent man and sadly, with great regret, this is not closure for either family at this time.’’
That statement is one that is echoed by Rochai Taiaroa.
She said her family’s trial began when they had to learn to live without their dad.
‘‘People talk about closure, but there is no closure.
‘‘We don’t have the opportunity for appeal, we will never be released from our verdict.
‘‘Our sentence is for life, as our father will never come home.
‘‘There are moments in time that change your life. People never forget what they were doing or where they going in those instances.’’