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Allan James Pink, known as Jamie Pink, was jailed today for 7 years and 4 months in the Hamilton District Court. Photo / Christine Cornege
A Ngaruawahia gang leader who attacked his Sergeant-at-Arms in a blatant patch removal on the city’s main street has been incarcerated for more than seven years.
During his sentencing in Hamilton District Court today, Allan James Pink, known as Jamie Pink, was described by Judge Robert Spear as a “curious mix of people”; His long list of criminal convictions was matched by longstanding and dedicated charity work for school-age children in Waikato.
In September, Pink was found guilty at trial on one count of injuring with intent to cause serious bodily harm.
He was found not guilty of participating in a criminal group.
The charge came after Pink ordered his gang members to search for his Sergeant-at-Arms, Zion Coker.
He was finally seen in his car on the main street of Ngaruawahia and a group of 10 attacked him.
Pink appeared with an ax and crashed several times to his knees as Coker lay curled up in a ball on the path.
The incident, on August 8, 2018, was seen by many locals, most of whom were too scared to testify against him.
However, two women and a truck driver eventually did and it was her testimony that convinced the jury that Pink was involved.
Pink had denied participating in the attack. Instead, she said she was around the corner at a cafe when they told her they had found Coker. He went to the scene to try to stop the violence and took the ax from one of his group.
Crown prosecutor Jacinda Hamilton said the attack was a highly premeditated and retributive assault.
“The defendant led what can only be characterized as a frenzied and orchestrated attack and did so in broad daylight on the streets of a small rural town.
“What they did was effectively corner the victim, outnumber him, put themselves in a situation where if they had chosen they could have demanded the return of the patch without the need for violence. But they didn’t do any of that.”
Hamilton said the attack was designed to send a message not only to the victim, who suffered serious knee injuries and a broken thumb, but to other community members who would consider crossing Pink and her gang.
He urged Judge Robert Spear to take a 10-11 year starting point before offering discounts.
Pink’s attorney, Russel Boot, tried to divert Judge Spear from such an important starting point and urged him to take into account all the good work he had done in the community.
He asked him to make a general assessment of the evidence presented at trial and that it was not a gang war, but a gang that was carrying out an attack on one of its own.
“You make an open decision to join Tribal Huks and are aware of those responsible and the requirements of those.”
He said it was unclear how the attack affected the victim, as he had never participated in the prosecution.
But Judge Spear said that while it was a gang seeking to maintain power over its members, which in this case was caused by Coker allegedly involved in the methamphetamine trade.
“There was nothing in the name of Mr. Coker that caused this attack … but making this attack happen is something that could never be tolerated, excused or mitigated in this country.
“The degree of violence involved here was extreme. While I accept that you did not target the head, only the legs, it was clearly your intention to maim this man to the best of your ability without risking his life.
He described the witnesses as “very brave” to give testimony under the circumstances.
“The degree of prominence you have in the Ngaruawahia community was such that you were easily recognizable and there was no doubt in the minds of those two women who saw you commit this attack that you were actually wielding that ax hard against the Lord’s legs. Coker “.
“It is worrying that he felt capable, in the small community of Ngaruawahia, to carry out such a blatant attack on the main street in broad daylight, certainly without believing that anyone would have the will to testify against him.
“That cannot be allowed and is not controlled.
Judge Spear also pointed to Pink’s more charitable side, describing him as a “curious mixture of one person.”
“You have a family and you seem to be very proud of them but, of course, they had a very different childhood from you.
“As I thought about this case in preparation for this hearing, I realized that you are a curious mix of people.
“It is clear that you have found a family with the Tribal Huk gang and it has certainly given you some direction in your life, whatever direction it is, but you have changed a lot of that for the better.
“Maybe it was due to the many occasions when you were sent to elementary school without food for lunch that you developed, through the band Tribal Huk, a school lunch program in Waikato.”
At one point, Pink was delivering up to 1,000 lunches a day at various schools in Waikato. He also held a Christmas party for underprivileged children in Ngaruawahia and gave cash to schools for drug education.
“I cannot ignore that. I consider that it is a factor that should weigh heavily in your favor when I come to evaluate what the eventual sentence should be here.
“Unfortunately, due to this offense and the fact that you will be incarcerated, that program will come to an end.”
Judge Spear awarded discounts totaling 30 percent for his community work and background, resulting in a final sentence of seven years and four months in prison.