Hastings 'predator' who sexually abused children in his family over 25 years jailed

The man was sentenced in the Napier District Court. Photo / Warren Buckland

A Hastings man who sexually abused children in his own family over a quarter of a century has been sent to prison for more than 12 years.

The offending occurred against two girls and two boys between 1995 and 2020, the Napier District Court was told on Friday.

The man was stepfather to one of the children and an uncle of the others.

The court was told the man had written a letter of apology, but Judge Geoff Rea said the letter came "30 years too late".

The man was charged with 11 offences including attempted rape and rape of the girls at different ages, assault on a child, male assaults female and unlawful sexual connection in respect of the boys.

The court heard that the man forced the crying boys to perform sexual acts on each other while he watched.

The Crown summary of facts said after some of the offences, the man told the children he would beat them up if they told anyone. Despite this, the children sometimes told their mothers but they were not believed.

Judge Rea suppressed the man's name because naming him would identify his victims, and it was important the familial nature of the offending be reported.

He told the man name suppression had "nothing to do with the protection of your reputation, but everything to do with proper reporting and the protection of the complainants".

Judge Rea acknowledged the man had been a victim himself, but said "you turned into a predator very quickly over 25 years ago and kept on being a predator for two and a half decades".

Judge Rea sentenced the man to 12 years and three months in prison and imposed a non-parole period of six years.