Wi Huata witness rejects fraud office evidence

The Huatas at the Auckland District Court. Picture/ Martin Sykes

Wi Huata's defence to charges of fraud involving the Government-funded Pipi Foundation lasted just over an hour yesterday.

Only one witness, computer forensic expert John Thackray, was called and Huata himself did not give evidence.

His wife, former MP Donna Awatere Huata's defence starts on Monday in the Auckland District Court.

The couple face seven charges relating to $82,000 from the foundation.

In his opening address for Huata, defence counsel Sanjay Patel told the jury they had to consider whether Huata knew of the cheque transactions or whether any such transactions were fraudulent.

In relation to attempting to pervert the course of justice, Mr Patel said there was no evidence that Huata deliberately tried to deceive anyone.

Huata was just part of a collective process involving other trustees in trying to piece together the foundation's prior dealings in the absence of any documentation.

The jury had to consider the intent behind bringing the documents into creation, who requested them and the source of the information relied on.

The Serious Fraud Office says that invoices were created on computer some years after the dates on the documents.

Mr Thackray told the jury that the SFO analysis could not establish the author because there were no computer passwords and he said the creation dates were unreliable.

* Former Act MP Donna Awatere Huata and her husband, Wi Huata, face four charges of fraud and one of attempting to pervert the course of justice.

* Awatere Huata also faces two extra fraud charges.

* The Serious Fraud Office claims the couple cashed Pipi Foundation cheques and used foundation money for personal expenses, including school fees for their children and a stomach-stapling operation for Awatere Huata.