Sentencing — kidnapping — aggravated robbery — assault with intention to rob — assault with weapon — unlawful possession of firearm — Search and Surveillance Act 2012 — Sentencing Act 2002. The defendant appeared for sentence on charges of kidnapping, aggravated robbery, assault with intention to rob, assault with a weapon and unlawful possession of a firearm. The charges arose from several different incidents. In the first, the defendant had arrived at a residential address and made threatening remarks to the occupants and presented a shotgun at them. He left after taking cash. In the second incident, police searched a hotel room where the defendant was staying and found a loaded pistol. Finally, the defendant became involved in altercation and attempted to take the keys from the ignition of a car; when the car's occupant resisted, the defendant entered a second car and assaulted and overpowered the owner. He then forced the owner at knifepoint to drive overnight to Hamilton, a distance of some 500km, before getting out of the car and allowing the owner to escape. The Court observed that the offending was serious and aggravated by threats, use of weapon, actual violence, offending while subject to a sentence, causing harm to people and damage to property, premeditation and prior convictions. The Court set a start point of five years' imprisonment for the kidnapping, uplifted to seven years six months for the other offences and the defendant's history of offending. In mitigation the defendant had surrendered to police, expressed remorse and offered to undertake restorative justice, and pleaded guilty. Also, his cultural report outlined his traumatic upbringing. Given these mitigating factors and the fact that the defendant had already spent 18 months in prison prior to sentencing, the Court imposed a final sentence of 12 months' home detention at a rehab facility, and reparations of $390 to one of the victims whose car was damaged in the offending. Judgment Date: 7 May 2021