This week, she appeared for sentencing in the Hamilton District Court before Judge Glen Marshall on charges of burglary, shoplifting, unlawfully taking a motor vehicle, possession of cannabis, fantasy substances and meth.
The first incident happened in May last year after Ngahere and a friend had wrapped up a night partying in the city’s nightclubs.
The pair were keen to go home and came across a man whom they asked for a lift.
He agreed and they directed him where to go.
They ended up pulling him from the Holden Colorado and leaving him near Dixon Rd before driving off in his ute.
They were spotted driving at speed along Mill St at 3.30am and police later found the vehicle abandoned near Maeroa Rd.
The pair were also found and Ngahere still had the keys on her.
While the ute was found, the man’s tools, worth about $10,000, were missing.
From September 25 to November 11 last year, Ngahere stole clothing and other items totalling $4851.76 from Woolworths Rototuna, Farmers Chartwell, Baby Factory Hamilton, Postie Plus Chartwell, Four Square Fairfield, Mitre 10 Te Rapa and Stirling Sports Te Awamutu.
Given Ngahere’s criminal history, she has been trespassed from several Hamilton businesses, so when she was caught stealing she was charged with the upgraded count of burglary.
In court, Ngahere’s counsel David Venter said his client had spent nearly nine months in custody and had attended a restorative justice conference with the owner of the Holden.
She had spent years in and out of custody and “has a fairly lengthy history”, the court heard.
The trouble was, when she got out of jail she would “fall back to her old ways… and end up with the wrong people” because she didn’t have a support network, Venter said.
He said she was keen to attend a rehabilitative facility, which would provide a supported and structured environment and help change her ways and get a job.
She’d had a meeting with the manager of a charity organisation in prison this week, the court heard.
Venter suggested to Judge Marshall that he impose a time-served sentence so she could go straight there to connect.
The judge said he couldn’t simply “engineer” discounts to suit his client.
“If it coincides, it coincides,” he said.
However, he indicated he would grant her leave to apply for home detention if a suitable facility became available.
Venter accepted that was fair.
In sentencing Ngahere, Judge Marshall labelled her offending a “spree” and found an overall starting point of 25 months’ jail was appropriate.
He was prepared to give her another 10% discount, noting she was keen to turn her life around.
“The thing is, a lot of it depends on you.
“The court just can’t provide you with everything, and the resources in the community are limited.
“You need to seize any opportunity you get.”
After getting down to 17 months, he added three months for her “horrific” criminal history.
He then jailed her for 20 months and granted her leave to apply for home detention.
Despite police seeking reparation of about $15,000, Judge Marshall declined to order it as she had no means to pay.
Belinda Feek is an Open Justice reporter based in Waikato. She has worked at NZME for 11 years and has been a journalist for 22.