The owner of Waimana General Store is facing a raft of charges relating to violence and exploitation of migrant workers.

Ravdeep Sodhi appeared in the Whakatāne District Court on Wednesday charged with injuring with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, impeding breathing or blood circulation, assault with a weapon, four counts of exploitation of persons entitled to work, two counts of threatening to kill, assault on a person in a family relationship and injuring with intent to injure.

Waimana General Store as a business has also been charged with four counts of exploitation of persons entitled to work.

The Crown is prosecuting.

Sodhi was remanded to appear in Tauranga District Court next week.

Charge withdrawn

Police have withdrawn a charge of unlawfully taking a motor vehicle, which had been laid against Credence Phillips.

Trial scheduled

Kawerau man Hauraki Matenga-Ashford, 28, has had a judge-alone trial scheduled in January, so he can defend himself against a charge of common assault.

The self-represented man appeared in court this week and maintained his not guilty plea.

The trial is estimated to take three hours.

He also pleaded not guilty to a new charge of threatening behaviour.

On the latter charge, he was remanded to appear in court for a case review hearing in October.

Case remanded

A second case review hearing has been scheduled for Degan Allison, who has been charged for alleged offending against police.

His charges include failing to stop for police, obstructing police, resisting police, escaping police custody, and three counts of assaulting police.

Allison was remanded on bail to appear at the end of October.

Charge upgraded

Police have amended a charge laid against Anarea Biddle-Paihau, after assessing that she was undercharged originally.

A charge of injuring with intent to injure was upgraded to wounding with intent to injure.

Biddle-Paihau pleaded not guilty and elected trial by jury.

She was remanded on bail to October for a case review hearing.

First offence in 17 years

Alexander McMillan has been sentenced to 50 hours of community work for drink driving – his first conviction since 2008.

The defendant pleaded guilty this week to driving through a police checkpoint with a breath alcohol level of 522 micrograms. The legal adult limit is 400 micrograms.

He was also disqualified from driving for a year and a day.

Judge Thomas Ingram said the alcohol level was relatively low, and credit was given for the defendant having stayed out of trouble for so long.

Sentence cancelled

Ray Hill’s outstanding community work has been cancelled, with no alternative sentence imposed in its place.

Hill appeared in court on a charge of breaching community work, and an application was made to substitute the sentence with a fine.

Duty lawyer Robert Savage said the defendant had been in a car crash and was no longer physically able to do the sentence.

Hill was convicted and discharged without penalty on the charge.

Home D extended

Whakatāne woman Marama Nahi has had her home detention sentence extended by a month after she was caught drinking while serving the sentence.

Nahi pleaded guilty to a charge of breaching home detention, which was due to come to an end late next month.

Judge Ingram disagreed with a submission that a suspended sentence would be sufficient.

“I’m not having people drink on home D.”

He said there needed to be significant punishment and sentenced Nahi to one month of home detention, deferred to September 26.

Rehab facilitated

Joseph McGarvey has been remanded to late October for sentencing on a series of charges, to allow him to engage in residential rehabilitation.

McGarvey pleaded guilty this week to failing to stop for police and assault on a person in a family relationship. They joined previously admitted charges of threatening to kill, burglary and breaching community work.

He has recently been accepted into and started residential rehabilitation in Auckland, and lawyer Kylee O’Connor sought a remand that would allow him to engage in the 12-week programme.

McGarvey is due back in court at the end of October.

A bail condition was added to reside at the rehab facility 24/7 unless accompanied by a staff member.

Bail declined

Hemirangi Kingi has been remanded in custody until today after Judge Ingram declined an application for electronically monitored bail.

Kingi faces charges of discharging a firearm to intimidate, unlawfully taking a motor vehicle, burglary, assault, being unlawfully in an enclosed yard, dangerous act with intent to injure and taking a bank card for pecuniary advantage.

Police opposed the bail application.

Two charges withdrawn

Police have withdrawn two charges laid against Judd Ponini-Kara.

They were threatening to kill and assault on a person in a family relationship.

Ponini-Kara pleaded guilty to a third charge of speaking threateningly.

His case was adjourned to today.

Trial scheduled

Zion Te Kowhai has had a judge- alone trial scheduled for January 29.

He has pleaded not guilty to a charge of assault on a person in a family relationship.

Threatening message sent

Sheldon Harris-King has been sentenced to community work and supervision for sending a “quite extreme” message that resulted in a charge of threatening to kill.

Harris-King, 27, pleaded guilty to the charge this week. This was his first conviction.

Judge Ingram did not say what the message said but described it as “explicit and worrisome”.

Harris-King was sentenced to 50 hours of community work and nine months of supervision.

Trial date found

Karl Tauroa has been remanded to January 29 for a judge-alone trial.

He has pleaded not guilty to a charge of assault on a person in a family relationship.

Further remand

Katiana Thrupp has been remanded in custody until next month.

He previously denied charges of threatening to kill or cause grievous bodily harm, injuring with intent to injure or reckless disregard, possession of an offensive weapon, and two counts of assault with a blunt instrument.

Charges amended

The charges laid against Leonie McRoy were amended this week, resulting in guilty pleas and the defendant being sentenced after 60 days in custody on remand.

McRoy pleaded guilty to assaulting police by spitting, refusing to give particulars of her identity to police, two breaches of a protection order, and an amended charge of assaults child, which was initially laid as assault with intent to injure.

Police withdrew three other counts of assaults child, and one of assault with a blunt instrument.

Judge Ingram said the defendant was “clearly not in control” at the time of the offending, and she has had several difficulties in her life.

McRoy was sentenced to six months’ prison with six months of release conditions. Leave for substitution of the sentence was refused.

Remand for sentencing

Kawerau man Michael Webb has been remanded in custody to today, to allow the judge and lawyers to see if sentencing options other than prison are available.

Webb appeared from police custody on Wednesday charged with two counts of shoplifting, both relating to perfumes and colognes stolen from Chemist Warehouses in Tauranga, failing to provide police with particulars of his identity, and driving while disqualified.

He pleaded guilty to the charges.