Woman bashed stranger who was waiting to catch a bus home

A woman walked up to a stranger waiting for a bus and unleashed a barrage of punches that left the victim with significant injuries. 

The victim of Saige Maraia Tiopira’s attack has also been forced to quit her job, and no longer feels safe in New Zealand, after being in town visiting her mother. 

It was one of two assaults Tiopira was sentenced for in the Hamilton District Court recently, after also punching a supermarket worker as she fled with a bottle of chocolate milk. 

The 25-year-old’s counsel, Afitu Veatupu, unsuccessfully tried to keep her out of jail, with Judge Philip Crayton concerned about not only the seriousness of the assaults, but the fact she’d not long been released from jail before the first of the two attacks. 

‘Delivered a flurry of punches’ 

The bus station attack happened at the Hamilton Central Bus Depot about 5.20pm on March 10 this year. 

The victim was waiting for a bus when Tiopira walked up to her and kicked her without warning, before throwing a “flurry of punches” to her head, causing her to fall to the ground. 

Tiopira bent over and grabbed the victim by her hair with a closed fist, before punching her in the head with her other fist as the victim lay on the ground. 

The other assault happened at Mill St Pak’nSave on November 23, when Tiopira and her co-offender were in the store. 

Tiopira put two Lewis Road chocolate milk bottles in her shoulder bag, while her co-offender put two pies and an energy drink down his pants. 

They were confronted as they left the self-checkout area, and the staff member was able to recover one bottle of milk. 

However, Tiopira then tried to jump the exit gates before the staff member grabbed her shoulder bag with the chocolate milk inside. 

Tiopira made “multiple” attempts to hit the victim in the face, and was successful “a couple” of times, court documents state. 

Tiopira and her co-offender then fled the store with the items. 

‘A complete surprise attack’ 

In sentencing Tiopira, Judge Crayton labelled it a “complete surprise attack in circumstances where they were not able to defend themselves”. 

It’d had a serious impact on the bus depot victim. 

“She was here visiting her mother. 

“She hoped to only be here a short amount of time. 

“She has suffered significant injuries and consequences of your violence.” 

That included ongoing dizziness, nausea, not being able to work or return home, and losing her job. 

“The emotional effect is she now is not feeling safe in New Zealand the way she once did.” 

‘People should feel safe in a public space’ 

Of the supermarket offence, the judge said: “If you attack someone who is merely doing their job, trying to stop you from doing crime, then plainly there is a need to deter you and protect them.” 

He said Tiopira had a “very poor” criminal history, with convictions in February last year of assaulting a child and injuring with intent to injure, for which she was jailed for 13 months. 

She also had dishonesty and assault convictions stretching back to 2019. 

Judge Crayton took an overall starting point of 21 months before allowing credits of 25%, allowing for her plea, background, and remorse. 

He got down to 15 months’ and three weeks’ jail before then considering home detention. 

Tiopira had a property available, but the judge said he was “confronted by the fact that this was an unprovoked and significantly violent attack in a public place where everyone should feel safe, at the bus depot”. 

He also noted that she wouldn’t have been out of jail long after her most recent stint, before carrying out this attack. 

“In the circumstances I am not satisfied that commuting to home detention would ... deter you from further offending .. .and protect the community.” 

As Tiopira had already been in custody about four months, he noted she would likely be released in a further three months. 

She would then be subject to six months of prison release conditions. 

Belinda Feek is an Open Justice reporter based in Waikato. She has worked at NZME for 11 years and has been a journalist for 22.