An officer is in a serious condition after being struck by a vehicle in Manukau earlier Wednesday evening before a 21km cross-city pursuit made its way north to central Auckland. Video / Hayden Woodward / Ainslie McLean
A former reality TV star who was arrested last year following a pursuit in which a police constable was left hospitalised with serious injuries can now be identified.
Matthew John Saunoa, who built garages in Levin before rising to fame in 2006 at the age of 21 as he took out the top spot in season three of NZ Idol, appeared in Manukau District Court this afternoon for sentencing.
Judge Ngaroma Tahana ordered him to serve six years and seven months’ imprisonment, taking into account his guilty plea for aggravated serious bodily harm and 10 lesser charges relating to crimes he had committed since his deportation from Australia.
The courtroom was filled to capacity with uniformed police officers and other supporters of Constable Zane Wienk, the victim whose identity was also suppressed until today. He described the horror scene that evening, on the brink of death after getting hit with a stolen SUV driven by the former star. He was put in an induced coma and spent seven weeks in hospital, with multiple surgeries to follow.
“One day I may be able to forgive you for the physical injuries you have inflicted on me and the pain I suffer every day as a result,” the officer told Saunoa during a victim impact statement. “I will never forgive you for making my family cry over me.”
Police began the pursuit on the evening of November 9, after spotting what they thought to be a stolen car.
Matthew Saunoa, former New Zealand Idol contestant, in the Manukau District Court. Photo / Alex Burton
Saunoa’s vehicle hit an officer who was on foot about 30 minutes later as the officer attempted to stop the car by deploying road spikes on the corner of Manukau Station Rd and Osterley Way.
The officer was taken to hospital in critical condition, police said at the time.
“Our thoughts are with the officer and their family,” Counties Manukau District Commander Superintendent Jill Rogers said earlier. “Ensuring they are supported is our priority.”
Traffic chaos ensued as a large police response that included the Eagle helicopter followed. The pursuit lasted about 21km as the vehicle made its way north to the city centre, with the vehicle being found under Grafton Rd near Auckland Domain.
Police said Saunoa was located a short distance away on Khyber Pass Rd.
He was charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, failing to stop a motor vehicle, and taking a vehicle unlawfully.
The Serious Crash Unit attends Manukau Station Road after an officer deploying road spikes was struck by the vehicle being tracked by police.
At Manukau District Court the following day, the case was called but Saunoa did not appear because he too was in hospital. A lawyer requested name suppression on his behalf.
The injured officer remained in hospital for some time.
Saunoa’s single Hold Out, released just days after the 2006 Idol win, reached the top of the New Zealand Singles Chart and became TVNZ’s theme song that summer, but Saunoa was never offered a contract for a full album. The following year he appeared on short-lived TVNZ 2 reality series Pop’s Ultimate Star, garnering a third-place finish.
The court was told after his arrest last year that he was suffering from severe drug and alcohol addiction issues.
Saunoa has had a history of run-ins with authorities since his brush with stardom.
He was banned from SkyCity casino in 2007 after handing over cash to another man - an innocent act, he later said, of paying back someone who he owed money to.
A Gold Coast court denied him bail in 2016 after he failed to appear at an earlier hearing for a string of charges.
Still residing in Australia in 2020, he was sentenced to 13 months’ imprisonment after appearing in Ipswich Magistrates Court for nearly 30 offences, mostly relating to property crimes and drug use.
Saunoa moved to the Gold Coast to further his singing career, his defence lawyer told the court at the time, according to The Courier Mail newspaper.
“He realises he has lost everything through his drug addiction,” the lawyer said. “He’s placed himself in this difficulty and prison is really the only option in punishment for him today.”
Craig Kapitan is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice. He joined the Herald in 2021 and has reported on courts since 2002 in three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand.
