Kare Rata says the only way the community can keep safe is by speaking out. Photo/ Tania Whyte
Kare Rata says the only way the community can keep safe is by speaking out. Photo/ Tania Whyte
The sister of a man allegedly stabbed 17 times is pleading to a terrified Ruakākā community to “step up and do the right thing”.
On the night of September 7, police arrived at an address on Rakatau Pl and found Kare Rata’s brother Michael* with multiple stab wounds. His friend who had tried to protect him was also injured. The pair were rushed to Whangārei Hospital.
“My little brother is in a lot of pain and all I want is for the wider community to have the courage to stand up and help find these assailants,” Rata said.
“I understand the wider whānau are afraid of possible retribution if they come out. But if everybody stays silent, then nothing will happen.”
Rata was shocked to see her brother enveloped in bandages, covering stab wounds to his face, head and body.
She said the assault caused part of his head, from his right eye socket to his crown, to become temporarily numb. Another deep gash also affected the use of his right arm.
“Doctors told us that due to his swelling in his brain and other injuries, he would at least need a month to heal,” Rata said.
After having spoken to her brother, Rata believed she had a good understanding of what had taken place.
“That day he got a call from his friend. She had recently come from Auckland and invited him to a party she was attending at an address on Rakatau Pl.”
Rata said after Michael finished partying, he reportedly called one of his sisters to pick up him and his friend.
The pair were waiting at the front of the property when her brother was apparently approached by a 17-year-old partygoer and asked how he was doing.
“When my brother told him he was good, the teen asked him again, ‘You sure you all good bro?” and my brother replied, ‘All good’. The guy turned around and began to stab Michael just like that,” Rata claimed.
Initially, the 27-year-old believed that he was only punched in the face but soon realise a knife had been used.
Despite Michael’s attempts to break free, several others reportedly joined in to hurt him.
Michael and a friend were stabbed at an address on Rakatau place, reportedly by young teens. Photo/ Tania Whyte
Rata said at that moment, his friend, in her mid-20s, jumped in to save him but was believed to have been stabbed in the process.
She said her brother was at first “hesitant” to share what happened.
“Apparently, he told his mother a false story about how he was attacked near a supermarket since he didn’t want her to get too worried. That’s probably why the police that night felt that he wasn’t cooperating,” Rata believed.
“But when I came over and told him to spill the beans, he didn’t hold back.”
A Rakatau Pl neighbour told the Advocate that he had heard a commotion around 10.30pm but didn’t make much of it.
“I ignored it since I had gotten used to the loud music and occasional noise of bottles breaking from my next-door neighbour. But what’s strange is that I haven’t seen him since the stabbing.”
Rata said what bothered her the most was that the offenders were still at large.
Police were asking witnesses to come forward, but so far no one has offered to help.
“My brother is a victim of a frenzied attack that could have killed him. The least he and my whānau deserve is for the community to step forward and help take this burden off us.”
Avneesh Vincent is the crime and emergency services reporter at the Advocate. He was previously at the Gisborne Herald as the arts and environment reporter and is passionate about covering stories that can make a difference. He joined NZME in July 2023.
