FIVE MAORIS GAOLED

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 20958, 4 December 1942, Page 4

FIVE MAORIS GAOLED

FATAL FRACAS SEQUEL

“INFLUENCE OF MANIA”

(P.A.) AUCKLAND, Dec. 3. Five Maoris from the Rotorua district. Ray Reihana, aged 36 years, and his three brothers, Tim, Rehu and Mickey, aged 31, 19 and 18 years respectively, with Henry October, aged 18, were sentenced by Mr. Justice Callan to-day to six months' imprisonment for assault causing actual bodily harm and - assaulting, resisting and obstructing police constables on duty. The judge said that the case was an unusual one in this country. The Maori youth October was a brother-in-law of the other four. Another brother, Rahu R'eihana, had been ill and after his recovery behaved queerly, going among other Maoris and members of his family saying that he was God and had the power, merely by looking, at people, to cause their death. This created considerable trouble among the Maoris, particularly in the forestry hut where the Maoris were accommodated. Because of complaints from a forest ranger, the constables went to the Waiotapu camp to tell the Maoris to leave the hut. “No one anticipated the extremis to which the Maoris would go,” said the judge. “The constables were unarmed and met very defiant Maoris, who assaulted them.” One constable received severe head injuries..: The police left, but returned later, when the Maoris again showed fight, beingarmed with pickets from a fence. Severe injuries were inflicted and Rahu Reihana died later. The judge said that the Maoris previously were of good character, and acted under-the influence of one with a religious mania.