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Ariki Rigby was murdered by Jimmy Heremaia after being seen wearing his Mongrel Mob T-shirt.
Heremaia pleaded guilty to murder and the arson of the burned-out car in which her body was found.
Rigby was killed with a hammer she had brought with her to a meeting with Heremaia, because she feared for her safety.
Teenager Ariki Rigby was murdered because of a Mongrel Mob T-shirt.
The T-shirt’s owner was the man who killed her, Jimmy Turu Heremaia, who had been “de-patched” by his gang chapter after Rigby was seen wearing the shirt in public.
This was against the “gang code”, the High Court at Napier has been told.
About 15 members of Rigby’s family watched quietly from the public gallery as Heremaia pleaded guilty via an audio-visual link from prison.
Justice Dale La Hood remanded him in custody for sentencing in April, when he will appear alongside his friend Ropine Paul, who has admitted being party to arson after buying the petrol which Heremaia used to burn the car.
Detective Inspector David De Lange said police acknowledged the guilty pleas.
“We acknowledge Ariki’s whānau, who have waited so long to see the person responsible held accountable for her tragic death,” De Lange said.
“We also acknowledge those police staff who worked meticulously over a long period of time to piece together the evidence that has brought about this result today.”
Rigby’s cousin Michael Ngahuka, who has acted as a spokesman for the whānau since her death, said the guilty plea was a “great conclusion from this horrendous ordeal” but it was not “justice”.
“As this story plays across the media, really is it honouring Ariki,” Ngahuka wrote on social media.
“She deserved better, she deserved her life.
“On the sentencing date, we will ride in her honour from the crime scene to where she was found, then to the final sentencing, we can make a whole lot of noise at the request of her mum, sistah, my extended family.
Heremaia, 32, was a patched member of the Flaxmere chapter of the Mongrel Mob.
Between August 29 and September 3, 2022, Heremaia was driving back and forth between Wairoa and Napier in a grey Toyota sedan.
He had borrowed it from his Mob captain on the pretence of needing a car for work.
On one of these journeys, Ariki Rigby travelled with him. Some time in the last two days of August, she came into possession of the T-shirt.
In the early hours of August 31, Rigby was seen by another patched Mongrel Mob member wearing the shirt in public in Hastings.
Gang regalia is subject to rules. Allowing anyone else to wear it is seen by members as a serious violation – particularly if the non-gang member wearing it is female.
In the words of a Crown summary of facts presented to the court: “Ms Rigby being seen wearing the Mongrel Mob T-shirt was the catalyst for the events that followed, and led to her death.”
Jimmy Turu Heremaia has pleaded guilty to Ariki Rigby's murder. Photo / Michael Craig
On September 2, Heremaia’s sister sent him a text message to say that his Mongrel Mob patch had been taken from the family home by gang members.
“The removal of Mr Heremaia’s patch meant that he had been ‘de-patched’ from the Mongrel Mob because of the incident involving Ms Rigby and the Mongrel Mob T-shirt,” the summary of facts said.
About 9.52 that night, Heremaia met Rigby in Onekawa, Napier and she got into his car.
They drove to Bay View, north of the city, where they parked up.
Ariki Rigby was beaten to death with a hammer in September 2022. Photo / Supplied
Rigby had a hammer with her as she feared for her safety.
The two argued and Rigby swung the hammer at Heremaia. He blocked her, overpowered her, and took the hammer from her.
He hit her twice in the head, causing skull and brain injuries that led to her death.
Heremaia picked the young woman’s body up from the ground and put her in the back seat of the car.
He drove towards Napier, then the rural area of Puketapu. He was in a panic, deciding what to do and how to dispose of Rigby’s body.
Police later used CCTV cameras and cellphone data to trace the journey. This also captured a Google search Heremaia made for “river parking”.
Heremaia eventually made his way to Paul’s house in Havelock North, where he changed out of his blood-stained clothes into fresh ones his friend gave him. He put the soiled clothes in the car with Rigby’s body.
Paul drove another car to the Mobil station in Havelock North, where he bought $70 worth of petrol.
About 1.45am, CCTV cameras in Havelock North captured both vehicles being driven towards River Rd, where there is a carpark next to the Tukituki River.
Rigby’s body was still face-down on the back seat of the Toyota.
Heremaia parked the car, poured petrol through it and set it on fire.
He then ran to Paul’s car a short distance away.
According to the Crown summary of facts, it was then that Heremaia told Paul that he had killed Ariki Rigby.
Police later inspected the burned-out car in the carpark but mistook Rigby’s body for that of a sheep.
Rigby’s body was identified as human remains after a man walking a dog took a closer look and raised the alarm.
Ric Stevens spent many years working for the former New Zealand Press Association news agency, including as a political reporter at Parliament, before holding senior positions at various daily newspapers. He joined NZME’s Open Justice team in 2022 and is based in Hawke’s Bay. His writing in the crime and justice sphere is informed by four years of front-line experience as a probation officer.
