But he is eligible for immediate release because of the time he has already spent in prison.
Latu Kepu appeared for sentence at the Auckland District Court today before Judge David Sharp after his earlier guilty pleas to threatening to kill, wilful damage and four breaches of his extended supervision order.
His actions included sending the woman a photo of himself brandishing a firearm outside her home, threatening to kill her during a phone call and smashing a window of her parents’ house.
A victim impact statement read in court by a police prosecutor said Kepu’s behaviour made her constantly on edge.
“He failed to understand the relationship is over,” she said.
“I know Latu is more than capable of carrying out his threats.”
She went to police because she could not continue to live in fear.
Latu amassed the convictions during a brief period on parole after spending much of his adult life behind bars.
For all the charges, Judge Sharp imposed a sentence of 16 months increased to 18 months for his prior history, the minimum uplift available.
Judge Sharp then reduced the sentence by five months for his early guilty plea, taking it within the time served range.
However, Kepu will not be released until the Parole Board makes a final ruling in the coming days.
He appeared in court via video-link and laughed at the conclusion of sentencing, saying “thank you Corrections!”.
A Judge has the ultimate responsibility for sentencing, not Corrections. Defence and prosecution can indicate to the Judge what sentence starting point they think is appropriate.
He gained infamy after his conviction for killing prison guard and former US marine Jason Palmer in 2010. At the time Palmer was working at Spring Hill prison where Kepu was locked up after already chalking up convictions for assaulting a police officer and a pregnant woman.
Justice Sally Fitzgerald earlier agreed to a five-year extended supervision order (ESO) including daily curfew from 10pm to 6am and an electronic monitoring bracelet.
Kepu, 34, had been in prison for 12 years when he was paroled in April last year with just a few months left on his sentence.
ESOs are reserved for former inmates who are believed to pose “a real and ongoing risk of further sexual or violent offending”.
Kepu’s history of violence and run-ins with the legal system stretches back two decades, including a 2004 Youth Court conviction for aggravated robbery in which he used a beer bottle to assault a taxi driver, along with more Youth Court convictions for robbery and assault a year later.
He was ordered to serve a sentence of two years and eight months in 2009 for a variety of offences that included kicking a police officer in the head six times, pushing a woman who was seven months’ pregnant to the ground, threatening to kill another woman “because she was Samoan” and kicking another person in the head while punching someone who tried to call police.
Six years and four months was added to his prison term after he pleaded guilty to the May 2010 manslaughter of Palmer, 33, who was attacked as he opened the door to Kepu’s cell at the Waikato facility.
The attack was planned after he was placed in segregation.
“Apparently confused as to why he was being segregated, Mr Kepu had a discussion with his supervising prison officer, which agitated Mr Kepu,” court documents state.
“He then spent the morning brooding and resolved to assault the officer when the opportunity arose.
“When the officer later returned to his cell, Mr Kepu punched him in the face, causing him to fall back and hit his head. The officer later died as a result of brain injuries.”
In a disputed facts hearing before Kepu was sentenced, Justice Paul Heath found the attack was pre-meditated and the defendant showed a lack of remorse.
He noted Kepu had twice been reported to make light of Palmer’s death, including to Palmer’s prison co-workers.
Two years later, Kepu was handed an additional seven-month sentence after pleading guilty to attacks on two officers in 10 days - kicking one in the stomach without warning and kicking the other in the face, causing the officer to lose a tooth.
Thirteen months were added to his sentence in October 2015 and another 21 months were added in October 2017 for inflicting multiple stab wounds on fellow inmates.
-By George Block
