But the sentence meant that for the first time in Tupoumalohi’s long criminal history, he had a diagnosis and treatment plan for a range of life disruptions, including fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, mild intellectual disability, traumatic brain injury, possibly ADHD and anxiety. The judge also drew attention. Since he was moved to PERU and began receiving specialized treatment, two corrections officers described him as one of their favorite inmates due to his positive attitude and great progress in a short time.

“Hope needs to be kept alive,” the judge said, refusing to impose a minimum prison sentence or increase the sentence due to his long criminal history.

He added that despite these mercies, he has a long road ahead and is unlikely to see the outside of prison anytime soon.

Tupoumalohi was being held in the lower-security Juliet unit at Auckland’s Mt Eden Prison when the first attack occurred in June 2021.

Tupoumalohi and four defendants were on the exercise range when a co-defendant and the victim decided to fight one-on-one to resolve the dispute, according to an agreed brief in the case. However, as the fight progressed, Tupoumalohi and others stepped in.

While others kicked and punched the victim, Tupoumalohi took out its handle, a makeshift knife commonly used in prisons, and stabbed him 14 times. Following the attack, the victim collapsed in the yard and the handle was hidden by another inmate, according to court documents.

“The defendants ignored (the victim) while she was slumped in a corner,” documents state. “They continued to exercise without any help or care…”

The victim was later hospitalized with a collapsed lung, brain swelling, a laceration to his left ear, wounds to his head, and puncture wounds to his neck, shoulders, and back.

The next attack occurred six months later, in December 2021, after the defendant was transferred to Auckland Prison. This again involved a fight on the exercise field that Tupoumalohi did not initiate, but when the violence began he quickly intervened to help the victim outnumber and overpower him.

After kicking the victim in the face and after one of the co-defendants repeatedly kicked the victim in the head, Tupoumalohi stabbed him an estimated 33 times in less than 40 seconds. The victim required stitches for a large wound on his head, as well as cuts on his hand and neck.

Just a month later, Tupoumalohi was in the garden with his soon-to-be next victim when one of the co-defendants approached from behind and punched the other man. This time Tupoumalohi stabbed him an estimated 30 times; This caused superficial wounds on his head, wounds on his forearm and hand that required stitches, and a wound under his eyelid that required surgery.

The last attack took place in April 2022, also on the exercise field, when Tupoumalohi walked with the victim and then participated in another violent attack.

“Mr. Tupoumalohi pulled a pointed weapon from under his sweatpants and stabbed (the victim) multiple times in the upper body,” the documents state, explaining that the victim curled up into a ball in an attempt to protect himself. “Mr Tupoumalohi continued stabbing with his right hand while holding his head with his left hand.

“…Mr. Tupoumalohi continued stabbing… first kicking him in the head and… throwing the sharp weapon into the toilet.”

In addition to superficial cuts to his scalp, head and upper arms, the victim also required stitches for two wounds on his hand and head.

All of the attacks were captured on CCTV.

Tupoumalohi was charged with four counts of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, punishable by up to 14 years in prison.

Tupoumalohi pleaded guilty to the charges before district court judges last December and April, but the cases were sent to the High Court for sentencing after a judge ruled he might qualify for a rare sentence of preventive detention. Ultimately, however, the Crown chose not to pursue the sentencing option, which would have resulted in a sentence with no end date.

His capacity for violence had led to a deeply harrowing case, but his history of untreated trauma and disability was also harrowing, prosecutor Henry Steele said today.

It suggested a starting point of 16 years, at which 45% of credits would be applied for Tupoumalohi’s personal circumstances and guilty plea. Defense lawyer Emma Priest asked for a starting point of 12-14 years, with higher credits resulting in a five-year sentence.

“I think it’s important to recognize the environment of men who are caged, trapped with other dangerous men, and the realities that come with it,” Priest said, adding that his client’s problems meant he was more easily manipulated by others.

He described his client as someone who had spent most of his life in prison from the age of 13, when he was placed in a Tonga prison while living abroad with his extended family. The woman, who said she had not spent more than a year out of prison since then and had “really fallen through the cracks”, revealed that she had received little benefit from rehabilitation programs so far.

But he added: “There is real hope here.” He said he had been on “exemplary behavior” for almost two years and had seen a “pretty remarkable turnaround”.

He described the high-security PERU unit as “incredibly restrictive and punitive” but said it gave his client the stability to focus on improving himself.

Judge Edwards accepted that Tupoumalohi had not had a great start in life, a situation made worse by his untreated injuries.

“As a child, you weren’t safe at home,” he said. “Violence surrounded you from a very early age.

“… You use violence because it’s all you’ve ever known and you have a hard time stopping and thinking.”

Tupoumalohi will have to serve consecutively the six-year prison sentence with his already accrued previous sentences of five years and five months, imposed in April 2022, and three years and nine months in October 2022, for wounding, assault with intent to rob and aggravated robbery.

He said the best way to protect society would be to have him leave the PERU unit first and eventually get paroled, while allowing him to continue to receive “the right support and medical attention that you need.”

Captain Craig He is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice. He joined the Herald in 2021 and has covered the courts since 2002 across three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand.

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