A repeat burglar has told a Hamilton court he broke into the same rural home twice within five weeks to raise money to pay for the headstone of his infant child.
According to a report by the New Zealand Herald, Haami William Te Hore appeared in the Hamilton District Court for sentencing on two burglary charges after stealing around $15,000 worth of electronics and clothing from a Te Kowhai property in separate break-ins during late 2025.
The court heard Te Hore first entered the home on November 21, 2025, through a window while the occupants were away, stealing items valued at approximately $10,000.
Just over a month later, on December 30, he returned to the same property at around 5.10 am, again entering through the same window and taking a further $5000 worth of belongings, the New Zealand Herald has reported.
During the second burglary, Te Hore spent about an hour inside the house, disabling the property's power supply and removing CCTV cameras before leaving.
Police later recovered some of the stolen property from his address. While Te Hore admitted responsibility for the first burglary, he denied involvement in the second.
At sentencing, defence lawyer Ashleigh Beech sought additional sentence reductions beyond an earlier sentence indication that proposed 30 months' imprisonment with a 20% discount, the New Zealand Herald has reported.
Judge Kim Saunders questioned whether Te Hore could make a lump-sum payment towards reparation.
Beech said her client had $2500 in his bank account but could not access it because the account had been frozen after he attempted to use it while in prison.
“In custody, that’s an impossible task,” Beech said, as quoted by the New Zealand Herald.
She also told the court Te Hore had written a letter apologising to the victims.
Judge Saunders responded, “I think defendants need to learn that writing a letter does not mean a discount,” as quoted by the New Zealand Herald.
Beech said Te Hore had wanted to participate in restorative justice, although the victims declined.
“Do you get credit because you say you want to go to restorative justice?” the judge asked.
“Not discretely,” Beech replied.
Judge Saunders said, “You cannot, for one minute, lay that at the feet of someone who was subject to being burgled on two occasions,” the New Zealand Herald has quoted.
The defence also explained the motivation behind the offending, saying Te Hore had been under financial pressure after the death of his three-month-old child in 2024.
According to Beech, the family was unable to receive the child's headstone until the outstanding bill had been paid, with late-payment fees continuing to accumulate.
“While not excusing the offending, that is the explanation behind it,” she said, as quoted by the New Zealand Herald.
Judge Saunders acknowledged the emotional and financial impact the burglaries had on the victims.
“The violation of their safe space has been overwhelming, and no one feels safe living there any more,” the New Zealand Herald has quoted.
She also noted Te Hore's lengthy criminal history, telling him he was “someone who is not shy about committing burglaries,” as quoted by the New Zealand Herald.
The court heard Te Hore had previous convictions for burglary dating back to 2006, an aggravated robbery in 2009 and another burglary in 2022.
While the judge accepted his background and expressions of remorse, she granted only a further one-month reduction in sentence, as reported by the New Zealand Herald.
Te Hore was sentenced to 23 months' imprisonment and granted leave to apply for home detention if a suitable address becomes available.