Killer given three years off for plea

By JO-MARIE BROWN AND NZPA

The family of a murdered Rotorua woman are upset that her killer's sentence was cut by three years because he pleaded guilty before his trial.

Val Burr's 21-year-old daughter, Tanya, was stabbed 15 times with a carving knife last year when John Wharekura knocked on her front door and asked to borrow a pen and paper.

The 17-year-old was sentenced to life imprisonment on Friday when he appeared in the High Court at Rotorua.

But for Wharekura's early guilty plea, Justice Paul Neazor took three years off the mandatory 17 years' non-parole for home invasion-style murders.

Miss Burr's family and friends said Wharekura was not entitled to any credit, given the brutality of the unprovoked killing.

Val Burr had addressed Justice Neazor during sentencing and said the murder had caused her to lose concentration and her short-term memory.

Afterwards Mrs Burr said it was "dumb" that Wharekura was given three years off for pleading guilty.

She "firmly believed" she would never recover from losing her daughter so tragically.

"There will be no closure unless Tanya walks around the corner."

Sensible Sentencing Trust national spokesman Garth McVicar said he agreed that an incentive was needed to encourage people to plead guilty.

But he did not believe a 17-year non-parole period was a long enough starting point in Wharekura's case.

"If we're going to send a loud, clear message to these people that are committing these crimes we need a true life sentence for that type of offence. Then if the judge wants to give three years off I'd have no problem with that," Mr McVicar said.

The court heard that Wharekura's only motive for killing the pregnant woman was that he wanted to steal her car.

He went to her Hilda St block of flats on September 15 to take up a family friend's offer of living with them. The friends were not at home so Wharekura went back to his previous flat, which he had been asked to leave.

He armed himself with a carving knife and told his former flatmates that he intended to steal a car.

He went back to the Hilda St flats and knocked on Miss Burr's door, asking for pen and paper to leave his friends a note. Miss Burr agreed but was stabbed when she returned to the door.

Defence lawyer Harry Edward said Wharekura had an abusive upbringing in Whangarei and left school at the end of fourth form unable to read or write. He became a heavy drinker, cannabis smoker and methamphetamine user.

At age 15, he moved to Rotorua to find his biological father, who was in court on Friday to support his son but did not want to be named.

"I just wish I had more time with him. If anyone could get him out of [trouble] like that it would have been us."

He said his son had been doing well on a course in Rotorua but became involved with a bad crowd. "We want to apologise to the family but I don't know how to say it."

Sentence row

A 17-year-old who admitted a home invasion-style killing had three years cut from his mandatory term because of the guilty plea.

The sentence has deeply upset the family of victim Tanya Burr.

She was pregnant when she was slain.