Imprisonment of a young man for firing five shots at a house, one bullet of which lodged in a man’s forehead, is required to send a message to the gangs using such people to do their dirty work, says a Whakatāne District Court judge.

Lennox Wetini-Clarke, 21, was sentenced in Whakatāne District Court on Wednesday to three years and four months in prison for charges of wounding with reckless disregard and discharging a firearm with intent to intimidate.

The court heard that the Rotorua man was associated with people connected to the Black Power gang.

Earlier in the evening on December 13, 2023, a co-offender went to a Matirerau Street property in Wairaka, known to be occupied by Mongrel Mob associates and they had what Judge Thomas Ingram described as an “exchange of opinions”.

Just before 10pm, Wetini-Clarke got into a vehicle that the co-offender was driving. The defendant was in the rear passenger seat behind the driver.

There was a rifle in the vehicle that Wetini-Clarke picked up and as they drove slowly past the same address his co-offender had been to earlier, another person in the car told him to shoot at the house.

Judge Ingram said the blinds were drawn and the lights were on.

Wetini-Clarke fired five shots towards the windows, about 15-20 metres away, appearing to use all of the ammunition.

The shots struck the dwelling, one of them breaking a bedroom window and hitting an occupant in the forehead.

Judge Ingram said the bullet lodged in the victim’s skull. It required surgery to remove. The victim experienced no ongoing physical effects, but suffered from memory loss and cognitive issues.

The shooting was captured on video by another person in the vehicle.

Wetini-Clarke initially denied being the person in the video and changed his plea earlier this year.

The offending was described by police as gang warfare and premeditated.

Lawyer Kylee O’Connor said the victim was not associated with gangs and although the offending was gang-related, it was not gang warfare.

She said Wetini-Clarke did not know what was intended when he got into the vehicle that night, and was unaware of the earlier altercation.

Rather, he thought they were going to buy some alcohol and keep drinking after being at a tangi.

Ms O’Connor said the defendant got into the car, saw the firearm, picked it up and a short time later – a matter of seconds – he was instructed to aim it at the windows.

Judge Ingram said based on the evidence, he had to conclude that it was gang behaviour involving Black Power and Mongrel Mob, and Wetini-Clarke was prepared to be a part of it.

He said if the defendant did not want to do as he was instructed, he should have put the gun down.

The lawyer referred to the prosecution’s written submissions that the view from the street was clear and the movement of occupants inside the address were obvious.

Ms O’Connor disagreed and said lights being on at night did not necessarily mean anyone was inside. She submitted that firing at an address that could have people inside was reckless.

Judge Ingram said the defendant knew full well there was a risk of causing severe injury or death to anyone inside the address.

Wetini-Clarke was on bail prior to the sentencing this week, and a sentence of home detention was sought.

During his time on remand, the defendant gained employment through a cadetship, and Ms O’Connor said he had not breached or offended further.

A doctor’s report was filed stating imprisonment could have a negative effect on Wetini-Clarke in several ways, including the in-prison gang culture, peer pressure, violence, anti-social behaviour, the associated risk of reoffending and difficulty reintegrating upon release.

It would also mean he lost his job and contact with his young daughter.

A pre-sentence report recommended a sentence of home detention, primarily because of  Wetini-Clarke’s youth, relative lack of prior convictions and the prospects of him making positive progress in life.

Judge Ingram said there was no option but to sentence Wetini-Clarke to prison.

“People who fire shots at residential housing should go to prison, bar nothing.”

Judge Ingram said in his 20 years on the bench in Whakatāne, gang-related firearms offending had only become more common.

When he began presiding over Whakatāne District Court, if there was a firearms charge in court it would normally be for unlawful hunting, he said.

But in recent years, there were very few occasions he would come to Whakatāne and not see a gang-related shooting.

“In my view, this is the clearest possible case of gang firearms activities, and I need to take that seriously.”

Judge Ingram acknowledged prison was not the ideal outcome for Wetini-Clarke, but this type of offending was so common that not imprisoning him would be an invitation for gangs to do what they were already doing – getting young people with limited criminal histories to do their dirty work, in the hopes of the court treating them leniently.

“If I do not sentence you to prison, I’m writing a blank cheque to allow more of it.”

He set a sentencing start point correlating to one year of prison for each shot fired, which was higher than the prosecution sought.

One third of the sentence, 20 months, was deducted for mitigating factors and Wetini-Clarke’s guilty plea.

His end sentence was three years and four months’ prison. Upon his release, Wetini-Clarke must pay $238.75 reparation for the broken window at a rate of $20 per week.

His co-offender is expected to pay an equal amount.

A firearms prohibition order was made.