A gang member who killed a man and stabbed another during a brawl outside a nightclub is set to be released from prison after serving two and a half years of his seven-year sentence.
George Junior Pikaahu was sentenced in the High Court at Blenheim in September 2022 for the manslaughter of Hiko Lynch, who died in June 2021 of a fatal stab wound.
Pikaahu, described at the time as a key figure in the Rebels MC gang, killed the Tongan seasonal worker during a mass brawl in Blenheim estimated to have involved about 50 people.
The court heard at sentencing of the devastating impact of his death on Lynch’s family, colleagues and friends, but notably on his fiancee. The two were to have been married later that year.
A Parole Board spokesperson confirmed Pikaahu appeared before the board last Friday and parole was approved.
He was to be released the week of April 14.
The reasons for the board’s decision will be contained in its report, which will be publicly available around mid-April, the spokesperson said.
Pikaahu was sentenced not only for the killing but also on charges related to stabbing another man and the attempted stabbing of a third during the fight between gang members and seasonal workers.
The victims, Lynch, Vaea Tonga and Ofa Fifita, were RSE workers in Marlborough.
Auckland-based Pikaahu was initially charged with murder but later admitted a lesser manslaughter charge.
On the evening of June 20, 2021, a large group of seasonal workers was at a club in central Blenheim.
Pikaahu was among members of the Rebels gang visiting from Auckland, who were also at the club.
As they left, two gang members assaulted an RSE worker, leaving him unconscious.
Pikaahu had no knowledge or involvement, but the assault was said to be the catalyst for what followed.
Once outside the venue, Tonga and Lynch found out about the assault and “aggressively approached” a member of the Rebels as the group was leaving and punched him in the back of the head.
Pikaahu was in front of the man who was punched and quickly ran to help him. As he moved towards him, he drew a large knife concealed in the waistband of his pants.
He lunged at Tonga, thrusting it into his stomach, leaving him with his intestines protruding.
After he fell to the ground, Lynch, 23, moved to stand between the two, but he too was stabbed and collapsed seconds later.
He died at the scene from injuries caused by the single stab wound, after the blade thrust violently upwards went through his stomach and punctured his heart.
Pikaahu hid the knife and crossed the street, then hid behind another gang member who was having a fistfight with another RSE worker, Ofa Fifita.
As the pair exchanged punches, Pikaahu lunged forward with the knife, aiming for the victim’s stomach, but he avoided being stabbed after he saw the knife and stepped back.
Pikaahu’s older brother, Māori Anglican bishop Te Kitohi (Kito) Wiremu Pikaahu ONZM, spoke at sentencing of the family’s shame, and gave a moving apology to the family of Lynch, who were watching via a video link from Tonga.
He relayed Pikaahu’s words in a letter to the family, including his sorrow for what he had done, and that every day he regretted what had happened.
Pikaahu’s lawyer, Brad Moyer, told NZME Pikaahu remained remorseful and had never shied away from the fact that he was responsible for taking a loved one from a family.
There will be a monitoring hearing in October.
