The Courts 15 Months Jail For Transvestite (Press, 19 April 1979)

On 19 April 1979, Andrew Ngawhika, a 28-year-old transvestite known as “Angel”, was sentenced in the Magistrate’s Court for committing an indecent act and sodomy against a 15-year-old boy. Magistrate N. L. Bradford expressed that such offences are regarded seriously and with disgust by the community. Ngawhika received a 12-month jail sentence for indecent assault and 15 months for sodomy, with the sentences to be served concurrently. During the trial, it was revealed that Ngawhika and the boy had been living together, and the act had occurred during this time. Ngawhika claimed that the boy had wanted him to engage in the act. The defence noted that attempts had been made to discourage the boy, and that a stabbing incident involving Ngawhika and an acquaintance had precipitated the police complaint. In unrelated cases, a handbag theft incident resulted in 22-year-old Ruth Graham being convicted after snatching a handbag from a 67-year-old woman. Graham admitted to the theft, which led to further complications as her accomplice, Kenneth Geffrey Sanderman Crichton, also faced charges for aiding her in escaping arrest. The stolen handbag contained $112, which was eventually recovered. The pair were remanded on bail to 26 April for sentencing. Merryll Joy Amst, a 17-year-old, was remanded for fraud after admitting to using duplicate social welfare payment orders to gain financial advantage, claiming she had not received the original. She was granted bail of $500. In another case, 20-year-old Peter Arthur Bourke was fined $175 for stealing petrol from a parked vehicle. Bourke was found in possession of siphoned petrol when apprehended by police. His justification involved being low on petrol after drinking, along with a plea of not having siphoned it himself. A 43-year-old woman, whose identity was suppressed, received a deferred sentence for assaulting a social worker, prompted by personal stress. She was ordered to undergo psychiatric treatment. Nineteen-year-old David John Nevitt was remanded in custody after pleading guilty to burglary, involving theft of stereo equipment and cash worth $2,000, with only a canary being recovered from the crime. The Magistrate ordered him to cover compensation for the unrecovered items. Additionally, two American servicemen, Ronald Owen Carr and Andrew Richard Lust, faced drug-related charges and were remanded without plea to 26 April. Carr is accused of cultivating and possessing cannabis, while Lust faces charges for possession and distribution of cannabis. Both were granted bail ahead of their subsequent appearances.

The text on this page is created, in the most part, using Generative AI and so may contain errors or omissions. It is supplied to you without guarantee or warranty of correctness. If you find an error or would like to make a content suggestion please get in contact

The text on this page is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 New Zealand