Kingston Tapiki sought a review after his visa was cancelled. Photo / 123rf
Kingston Tapiki sought a review after his visa was cancelled. Photo / 123rf
A schizophrenic man who committed violent crimes in Australia will be deported to New Zealand despite having little connection to this country.
Kingston Tapiki, whose visa was cancelled under the controversial 501 section of the Australian Migration Act, moved across the Tasman from New Zealand with his family in 1995 when he was just 18 months old.
In 2017 he was diagnosed with schizophrenia after being taken into psychiatric care for three months.
Kalton, Tapiki's twin brother, wrote in 2018 that his brother's mental health "hit an all-time low".
Tapaki's first recorded offence was in 2018 where he was caught shoplifting and fined $200. But his crimes escalated after he became homeless in 2019, a recently-released decision from the Administrative Appeals Tribunal of Australia said.
In 2020 he was found guilty of stalking or intimidating, destroying or damaging property, and common assault in a New South Wales court.
Tensions over the 501 debate have been clear between Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Photo / Penny Bradfield
According to police records, Tapiki was drinking with two other people when he approached a man calling him a "paedophile" and punching him once on the side of his head.
The victim fell then got back on his feet where Tapiki hit him a number of times while telling him he would "kill him".
A month after the conviction, Tapiki assaulted an unknown man in a park after he asked for a lighter.
Later that year, he was convicted of further serious criminal charges and was sent to prison.
While at a correctional centre, he attacked his cellmate calling him a "paedophile" several times before punching him in the face.
However, no charges were laid and in October 2020 Tapiki's visa was cancelled.
Tapiki fought the move but the Administrative Appeals Tribunal of Australia was not convinced.
The tribunal upheld the cancellation decision, saying Tapiki's offending was "violent and increasingly frequent".
"I find that the nature of the harm that would be caused if Mr Tapiki were to re-offend is very serious and is likely to involve significant physical, psychological and financial harm to members of the Australian community," the tribunal said.
Tapiki is currently being held in immigration detention where he will stay until his deportation back to New Zealand. He has no family connections to New Zealand.
