'Callous' killer gets life

An eastern Bay of Plenty man who murdered his half-brother in what a judge described as a "brutal and callous fashion" has been jailed for life with a minimum non-parole period of 15 years.

Whairiri Tamataonui Terewa was sentenced in the High Court at Rotorua yesterday morning.

Terewa had pleaded guilty to murdering Pomare Mason on December 22 by smashing in his head with a hatchet and slitting his throat with a butcher's knife. He then stuffed Mr Mason's body into a wheelie bin.

- NZPA