A young girl has allegedly been stabbed to death by her teenage sister in NSW‘s Lake Macquarie region.
Dozens of police remained at the scene in Thurston Street on Monday night
Emergency services rushed to a home in Thurston Street, Boolaroo near Newcastle about 3.45pm on Monday following reports of a stabbing.
Paramedics treated a 10-year-old girl at the scene for multiple stab wounds but she was unable to be revived.
Police arrested a 17-year-old girl at the home, and she was taken to Belmont Police Station and is currently assisting with inquiries.
No charges have been laid.
The girl’s death has rocked the close-knit neighbourhood.
‘It is just beyond words,’ a neighbour who knew the girl’s family told the Sydney Morning Herald.
‘We are grieving’.
Another resident told the Newcastle Herald that no one expected anything so horrific to happen in their neighbourhood.
Others had no idea anything was wrong until multiple sirens were heard blaring down the usually quiet street.
There are no other reports of injuries, and a crime scene has been established as investigations continue, with most of the street cordoned off with police tape.
Thurston Street was expected to remain blocked off until well into the night.
Forensic officers have arrived at the home to examine and photograph the crime scene and collect potential evidence.
Photos from the scene show shocked locals gathering outside the crime scene.
A number of police vehicles remained parked in the street as detectives were seen coming and going from the home.
The latest incident follows a spate of fatal stabbings across NSW in recent weeks.
It’s been two weeks since five women and a shopping centre security guards lost their lives during a stabbing rampage at Westfield Bondi Junction.
Up to 3000 Pacific Island and Timor-Leste nationals will be able to register for Australia’s new Pacific Engagement Visa program from 3 June, the Australian government has announced.
It will use an online ballot to select participants, who can then apply for the visa to migrate to Australia as permanent residents.
Applicants must secure a formal ongoing job offer in Australia and meet health and character requirements before being granted a visa.
Countries participating in the first year of the programme include Federated States of Micronesia (50), Fiji (300), Nauru (100), Palau (50), Papua New Guinea (1350), Solomon Islands (150), Timor-Leste (300), Tonga (150), Tuvalu (100), Vanuatu (150), with discussions ongoing with other partners in the region.
“The Albanese government is delivering on our commitment to deepen our connections with the Pacific and Timor-Leste with the Pacific Engagement Visa,” Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said.
Minister for International Development and the Pacific Pat Conroy said the programme “demonstrates the high value Australia places on its relationship with the Pacific and Timor-Leste”.
He said it would grow Pacific and Timor-Leste diasporas in Australia, “strengthening linkages between our people and encouraging greater cultural, business, economic and educational exchange with Pacific countries”.
Conroy added the program had “transformative potential”, making Australia’s world-class education and training system more accessible for new residents under the Pacific Engagement Visa.
“Through these impacts, and by boosting remittance flows to Pacific countries, the program will also support economic development and welfare in the Pacific.”
Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs Andrew Giles said the new visa programme was an opportunity to address the under-representation of Pacific Island and Timorese nationals in Australia’s permanent migration programme.
Less than one percent of permanent migrants currently come from the region.
“The programme is in keeping with the Government’s Migration Strategy which identifies deepening Australia’s people-to-people links with the Indo-Pacific as one of eight key actions to reform the migration system,” he said.
The man died at Hawke’s Bay Hospital after 15 days on ventilation. Photo: RNZ / Tom Kitchin
Te Whatu Ora has been ordered to apologise and better train its staff after a man died from a severe brain injury due to incorrect intubation at Hawke’s Bay Hospital.
The hospital failed to provide an appropriate standard of service, Deputy Health and Disability Commissioner Dr Vanessa Caldwell found in her report released on Monday.
The man was in hospital after suffering two wounds to his back. Staff decided to run CT scans to check for internal injuries.
Because he was agitated, he was anaesthetised so emergency department staff could insert a breathing tube into his trachea – but it was incorrectly placed in his oesophagus instead.
The error was not picked up for 15 minutes, and during that time the man sustained a fatal brain injury.
After he was properly intubated, the man was placed in the intensive care unit for 15 days until his ventilation was removed and he died.
Several factors contributed to the man’s death, including included a lack of standardised equipment, better equipment not being made available, and staff members believing that certain equipment was not functioning properly, Caldwell said.
Staff could see there was an issue with the man’s blood oxygen level, but assumed the equipment they were using – a capnograph – was not working properly, because it had been broken in the past.
That was despite a trauma nurse testing the machine and demonstrating that it appeared to be working.
That information was not handed over, or not recognised by the senior staff, the report said.
Staff called for another capnograph to be brought in from another department, unaware that another piece of equipment they could have used was on the airway trolley they were using.
“I am critical that Te Whatu Ora did not ensure that there was suitable equipment for difficult airway management available in the ED [emergency department], and that there was a lack of standardised equipment across the hospital,” Caldwell said.
“I am also critical that the staff were not made aware of the equipment that was available, and that the staff were not reassured that the equipment was functional and being maintained adequately.”
Staff also did not follow the standard practice in emergency airway management, which was to remove a tube if there is any doubt intubation has been carried out properly, she said.
Te Whatu Ora should provide a written apology to the man’s whānau and regularly train emergency department and intensive care staff on “the standard practice in emergency airway management”, Caldwell wrote.
Te Whatu Ora accepted the recommendations.
It said since the man’s death, Te Whatu Ora Te Matau a Maui (Hawke’s Bay) had made several changes, including:
Purchasing new equipment
Forming an airway committee including anaesthetics, intensive care, emergency, and ear, nose and throat departments
Reviewing and standardising airway equipment between ED, ICU and the operating theatre
Establishing an equipment testing and checking regime
Developing difficult intubation and airways checklists
A Tongan man has been named as the senior baggage handler at Auckland Airport who had arranged for his criminal colleagues to import methamphetamine into Aotearoa during the Covid-19 lockdown.
A New Zealand Herald report this week has identified Sese Vimahi as the man who arranged to import 20kg of methamphetamine in a suitcase, with an estimated street value of $8 million.
“Syndicates members called Sese Vimahi the “Tongan Pablo” – in reference to infamous Columbian drug lord Pablo Escobar for his role in smuggling drugs into his country”, the Herald said.
Describing his role in the drug importation attempt, the Herald said: “A US supplier would pack meth inside luggage and have it in the bulk hold of the plane from Los Angeles. At this end, Vimahi would arrange for Air New Zealand bag handlers to find the bag and remove it without going through security.
“The rip on rip off tactics is common around the world and relies on organised crime syndicates having trusted in working at the boarder.
“Through this corrupt network, Vimahi was still able to facilitate the importation of methamphetamine on flights from Los Angeles to Auckland despite being on bail. He was arrested, for the second time, in November 2021 following a joint investigation between the National Organised Crime Group and Customs”.
The revelation comes after Stuff reported earlier this year that a baggage handler who was a key figure in trying to import methamphetamine into Aotearoa during the Covid-19 lockdown, has been jailed for 14 years.
The 47-year-old, who Stuff cannot name at the time, was arrested alongside Tongan musician Romney Fuki Fukofuka, also known as Konecs.
At trial, the evidence showed he was a key organiser, texting instructions to Fukofuka to put the drug-ladened suitcase on the baggage carousel.
He had also arranged for his criminal colleagues, also formerly baggage handlers, to get the suitcase off the baggage carousel and deliver it to him outside the airport where he was waiting. Some were promised $20,000 for a successful drop-off.
The other co-accused were George Aloha Taukolo, Daniel Ah Hong and Mark Castillo all previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to import methamphetamine and were each sentenced to 12 months of home detention at Manukau District Court.
Judge Richard McIlraith said the trio showed “genuine remorse” for the parts they played in the attempted importation.
An Auckland man deported from Australia as a 501 after serving prison time as a teenager for a murder-for-hire plot involving a victim with cerebral palsy is again wanted by police.
At one point during the hour-long April 2023 pursuit, Sifa Tevita, now 37, had 20 police vehicles following him.
He drove in the wrong direction down the Waikato Expressway when it was busy with school holiday traffic, nearly hit an ambulance, swerved at members of the public and kept going even after two flat tyres fell off the Porsche.
When police finally caught Tevita, he “refused to provide an explanation, choosing instead to urinate in front of them”, according to court documents recently released to the Herald.
Tevita pleaded guilty to burglary, reckless driving and failure to stop for police and had been set for sentencing this week in Auckland District Court, where he faced a sentence of up to 10 years’ imprisonment.
He was also scheduled to be sentenced for breaching the Returning Offenders Act, which allows Corrections to supervise the reintegration of those returning to NZ after criminal convictions overseas – placing on them parole-like restrictions.
Judge June Jelas instead ordered a warrant for his arrest after he failed to appear for the hearing, with defence lawyer Harvena Cherrington indicating to the judge she had not been able to reach her client.
He remains at-large.
‘Risk to the public’
According to court documents, the crime spree began in affluent Auckland suburb Parnell about 2am on April 16 last year when Tevita and co-defendant Ronald Neilson cased out a gated residence where the 2021 model Porsche 911 C4S and a $50,000 Land Rover Discovery were parked.
They returned at 4am and removed the keys for both vehicles from within the residence.
“The defendant Neilson has driven the Land Rover directly at the security gate, smashing it from its hinges before driving from the property,” states the agreed summary of facts for Tevita’s case.
“The defendant Tevita has followed in the Porsche.”
Neilson has also pleaded guilty but remains at-large after failing to show up for a sentencing last month.
Police spotted Tevita heading towards Hamilton that same day after he attempted to purchase fuel for the sports car at a Waihi petrol station about 7.30am.
He realised police were onto him when they attempted to spike the Porsche’s tyres. When that attempt to stop him didn’t work, police pulled directly behind him with red and blue lights flashing. Tevita sped away.
“The defendant has entered the Waikato Expressway the wrong way before driving south in the northbound lane,” court documents state.
“He proceeded to travel 7km down the wrong side of the Expressway during which time he swerved toward police units travelling northbound and narrowly avoided colliding with an ambulance.”
He then exited the motorway onto Te Rapa Road in Horotiu, driving at an estimated speed of 80km/h despite the two right tyres of the Porsche having completely deflated at that point.
“As the defendant drove south along Te Rapa Rd, he against swerved towards a police unit and regularly travelled on the incorrect side of the road, forcing members of the public to the side of the road,” the police narrative continued.
“At one stage the defendant accessed The Base shopping mall car park, forcing shoppers to take refuge inside the shops, such was the manner of driving.”
Auckland resdient Sifa Tevita is arrested in April 2023 after a police chase involving a stolen $249,000 Porsche that was driven on the wrong side of the Waikato Expressway. Photo / Ashlee Garrett
He then returned to Te Rapa Rd, continuing to drive on the wrong side in an effort to shake police, the summary of facts states.
He travelled an estimated 80km/h in a 50km/h zone while again swerving towards members of the public, police noted.
“At about this time the two deflated tyres fell off the vehicle, causing the defendant to drive on the rims,” authorities have noted, explaining that he continued to avoid arrest by swerving at police or driving around them on the grass verges before again entering the wrong side of the Waikato Expressway.
“Due to the defendant’s manner of driving and unpredictable behaviour police were required to stop both north and southbound lanes of traffic to reduce the risk to the public,” authorities said.
Tevita continued to drive another 12km, including “extended periods” where he remained on the grass verge, until encountering “a considerable police roadblock” at the Taupiri interchange.
Seeing the trap that lay ahead, Tevita reversed down the motorway then exited between a wire barrier and a roadside fence in an effort to get around the roadblock.
“The defendant managed to drive a further 500m before eventually sliding into a fence, becoming stuck and fleeing from police [on foot],” court documents state.
“When arrested in a nearby paddock the defendant refused to provide an explanation, choosing instead to urinate in front of them.”
‘Not even a panadol’
During a hearing in Hamilton District Court later the same week, Tevita was seen hobbling into the courtroom dock.
He was “not in a good physical state” as a result of the incident, his lawyer at the time, Roger Laybourn, told community magistrate Brenda Midson.
“He has a serious back problem and has advised me that he has not even been provided with a panadol and wants me to raise that [with you],” Tevita’s lawyer said.
“I would like it noted on the file that it does impact on my ability to get coherent instructions from him.
“If a person has a back injury you would think an X-ray would be the minimum until any rational medical decision can be made.”
The magistrate agreed to put a note on the file before remanding Tevita without plea.
The case was later transferred to Auckland District Court.
‘Cruel and merciless’
The Waikato Expressway chase wasn’t the first – or even, arguably, the most bizarre – crime that Tevita has been in the public eye for.
In 2005, at just age 18, he was handed a precedent-setting 18-year prison sentence in a Brisbane courtroom after pleading guilty to slashing the throat of a young man in a wheelchair and stabbing him three times in the back.
The judge stipulated he serve at least 80 per cent of the attempting to kill sentence before eligibility would set in for him to apply for parole.
Tevita was 17 years old at the time of the May 2004 attack, which he said he participated in because victim Michael Birch’s roommate – Benjamin Luke Janz, who also suffered from cerebral palsy – had promised him $500,000 to carry it out.
Birch was left for dead but survived the attack, according to court documents from Australia.
“Mr Birch heard someone running into his bedroom,” the Queensland Court of Appeal recounted while considering if Tevita’s sentence was manifestly excessive.
“A hand came across his face pulling his head back, and he felt his throat being cut. After that, the applicant came back and stabbed him.”
“Are you right to use this?” the victim’s roommate had asked Tevita a short time earlier after handing him a folding knife with a 10cm blade.
“Do it now,” he added.
Janz, who would later receive a 10-year sentence, was described as the more intelligent of the two co-defendants.
“It may be that because of his own disability Janz was unable to carry out the killing himself and so engaged the applicant to do it for him,” the Court of Appeal noted.
Because of his disability, the victim had been in a wheelchair his whole life and was unable to defend himself, the court also noted.
He called police but was unable to speak due to the neck wound. He then wheeled himself outside his flat – the bloody sight prompting neighbours to call for an ambulance.
“The result for Mr Birch has been tragic,” the Court of Appeal justices wrote.
“Despite his disability, he had previously been able to live an independent life. He was a disc jockey for … a broadcasting system that serves the Children’s Hospital. Remarkably, he was also learning to fly an aeroplane.
“Now he can do neither of these things. Because of injuries to his larynx, he is unable to speak above a whisper. He is at constant risk of choking and has to have his food cut up for him to eat.
“It is painful to cough; he is vulnerable to colds, flu and throat infections; and he suffers continuous back pain from the stabbing inflicted on him. He now requires a full-time carer and his mother has had to resume living with him to look after him.”
In determining if the sentence was manifestly excessive, the court noted that “there is obviously not much to be said in mitigation of the applicant’s terrible deed”, adding that it was “cruel and merciless and carried out for money”.
Youth was a factor to consider, but “it does not require much maturity to know not to commit such an awful offence, even though it is clear from the psychologist’s report that the applicant is lacking in ordinary intelligence and insight”, the Court of Appeal found. It dismissed the appeal.
Tevita and his co-defendant were also ordered in 2008 to pay $75,000 in compensation – the maximum allowable under Queensland law – to the victim, according to the Brisbane Times.
The court was told Tevita moved to Australia in 1999, around age 12.
He left school at age 17 and turned to theft to fuel his drug and alcohol addictions.
By the time of his Waikato arrest, he had been released on parole, deported to NZ and was living in Auckland suburb Wesley, where he worked as a scaffolder, according to the more recent arrest records.
Craig Kapitan is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice. He joined the Herald in 2021 and has reported on courts since 2002 in three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand.
A fake tradie who fleeced customers off by more than $280k will be deported to Tonga after inflicting shoddy and incomplete work on vulnerable homeowners’ properties in Sydney and Wollongong.
Tevita Ungounga
Tevita Ungounga launched a charitable website where people who were interested can buy tickets, and the first prize is cash or a house built by him.
The unlicensed tradie did this online business marketing while spending time behind bars.
His sentence comes after he had faced 50 charges from fraud to illegal work, and was put behind bars for breaching his bail by doing more unlicensed and uninsured jobs.
Ungounga destroyed a man’s house and drained his life savings in one of the worst cases seen on A Current Affair has been exposed as a father who regularly attends church with his family.
Ungounga is well known to Fair Trading and New South Wales Police, but despite multiple public warnings and convictions, the 55-year-old from Moorebank has continued to work and left some homeowners in financial ruin.
One of his victims, Ian O’Connor from Illawong, gave Ungounga $235,000 to build a seawall and renovate his quaint home, Australia’s 9Now reported.
The 68-year-old was left with holes in his walls, unfinished rooms, and two years on still has no running water.
“He’s a pig, a disgusting pig,” Mr O’Connor said.
“He seemed quite nice, very friendly, but I guess you could say most conmen are.”
A dengue fever outbreak will be officially declared on Friday in Samoa.
More than 250 cases have been reported, with the majority on the mainland, northwest of Upolu, where most of the population lives.
The World Health Organisation describes denge fever as a viral infection that spreads from mosquitoes to people. Most people don’t get symptoms but for those who the most common were high fever, headache, body aches, nausea and rash.
Samoa’s Director General of Health Alec Ekeroma says a news conference will be held in Samoa at 4pm local time (3pm NZT).
Earlier he said: “No one has died from it, but the country needs to continue its protection measures, and we are planning a national campaign to clean up and destroy breeding sites for mosquitos.”
Samoa’s last dengue situation report dated March 18 – 24 showed 22 new lab-confirmed dengue cases recorded at the time, adding up to 40 cases in March.
The report noted the most affected age groups were those between 5-9 years old and those over 60.
Northwest of Upolu and Apia urban area regions are reported to be the most affected, but some cases have been reported from all regions including Savai’i.
Aiono said there were 20 different definitions of outbreak and they would decide which definition applied now.
If someone has symptoms of dengue-like illness, Aiono said they have to go to hospital so they can undergo blood tests to confirm if they do have dengue.
A public health alert on dengue fever has already been issued advising and encouraging clinicians to collect samples for testing for all patients presenting with dengue-like illnesses.
A Kawerau man is facing numerous charges after allegedly pointing a gun at police, evading arrest and holding people hostage in their own homes.
A 31-year-old Kawerau man has been arrested. Photo: RNZ / Richard Tindiller
The “dangerous and unpredictable incident” began when two police approached a “suspicious” vehicle on State Highway 30 in the eastern Bay of Plenty about 10pm on Wednesday.
The occupant fired a gun, then pointed it at the officers before driving off.
“An immediate police response allowed officers to set up cordons and locate the vehicle, preventing the suspect from leaving the area,” detective senior sergeant Paul Wilson said on Thursday.
The suspect stopped at a property on Hydro Road, just south of Edgecumbe, and held two people living there hostage, Wilson said.
He then entered another building where he allegedly assaulted and held a third person, in their 70s, hostage.
Police managed to rescue the first two hostages safely at about midnight.
Shortly after at 12.30am, the suspect gave himself up without incident.
One person was taken to hospital with minor injuries.
A sawn-off .22 rifle was recovered, Wilson said. Police will continue to examine the scenes.
A 31-year-old man has been charged with using a firearm against law enforcement, kidnapping, wounding with intent to injure, aggravated burglary, failing to stop, threatening to kill, unlawfully taking a motor vehicle and wilful damage.
He is expected to appear in the Whakatāne District Court on Thursday.
Hydro Road in eastern Bay of Plenty. Photo: Google Maps
“This was a dangerous and unpredictable incident,” Wilson said.
“Three victims have been through a distressing ordeal in their own home, a place where they should feel safe, and two police officers have faced a totally unacceptable threat while going about their duty.
“Police are ensuring the victims and the officers have the support they need.
“I’m proud of the actions of our police, who brought this volatile incident to a peaceful conclusion. Events like this are distressing for our communities; there will be an increased presence in the area and officers will be carrying reassurance patrols.”
Last night, the visiting delegation, made up of members of the United States Congress and the United Nations Foundation (UNF), departed Nuku’alofa, Tonga, following in-depth discussions with representatives from Government and civil society, as well as visits to schools, UN-supported projects, and the Vaiola Hospital.
While in Tonga, delegation met with Hon. Samiu Vaipulu, Acting Prime Minister of Tonga, as well as other Ministers and members of Government – Hon. Tiofilusi Tiueti, Minister for Finance, Hon. Siale Ákauóla, Minister for Health, Mr. ‘Isikeli Oko – CEO for Education and Training Mrs. Kilisitina Tuaimei’api – CEO for Finance, Dr. ‘Ana ‘Akau’ola – Acting CEO, Ministry of Health, Mr. Vatulele Tuputupu – A/CEO, MEIDECC, Miss ‘Olita Tupou – Acting Chief Secretary & Acting Secretary to Cabinet, PMO, Miss Ilaisipa ‘Alipate- Chief of Protocol, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“We are grateful to the Acting Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers for receiving us so warmly today. This meeting provides an important opportunity for the Congressional delegation to gain a deeper understanding of the challenges facing Small Island Developing States like Tonga, and to explore collaborative solutions that the US – through partners such as UN – can bring to help address these pressing issues,” said UN Resident Coordinator to Tonga, Mr Dirk Wagener, who was also part of the delegation.
Tonga faces many developmental challenges, all of which are exacerbated by the climate change emergency, COVID-19 and increasingly frequent and intense disasters.
The interconnectivity of economic, health, development, nutrition, and climate challenges in Tonga, combined with its remoteness, all contribute to its classification as the world’s second most at-risk country in the world in terms of its exposure and susceptibility to natural hazards and the unfolding effects of climate change.
The UN-Tonga Country Implementation Plan (CIP) 2023 – 2025, endorsed by the Government of Tonga in May 2023, defines UN assistance to Tonga to achieve its Strategic Development Framework and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
With an annual budget for 2023 of USD$17m, the CIP focuses on four pillars – Planet, People, Prosperity and Peace – to contribute to a Pacific region where all people are equal and free to exercise their fundamental rights, enjoying gender equality and peace, resilient to the existential threats and living in harmony with the blue continent.
In total, there are 23 UN agencies working in Tonga, including non-resident agencies.
As the sun rises on Anzac Day dawn services on Thursday, Tongans will remember the 94 young men from the islands who served in the First World War.
The young men who enlisted were mainly expatriate Europeans who had been born in or worked in the kingdom, but several Tongans also enlisted.
A roll call of the names of those who fought in the 1914-18 war contains familiar Tongan names: Fotu, Faletau, Tu’inukuafe, Taliaʻuli, Lomu and Mohenoa.
There are European names like Leger, Mahoney, Cowley, Sanft, Muller, Payne, Hurrel, Harper, Ramsay, Walter and Lynch which are still attached to large families on Tonga
Among those who went to war were people who rose to prominence later in life, such as Sateki Faletau, who served in the Maori Contingent and the New Zealand Medical Corps and later became Governor of Vava’u and Minister for Police.
But there are many more others with more ordinary backgrounds: Bakers, teachers, storekeepers and traders who came home after the war and went back to their trades and professions.
Only one Tongan died during the war. He was Sione Talia’uli, who died of pneumonia in 1918. He is buried in Palestine.
The names of the volunteers from Tonga or those with a connection to the kingdom have been gathered together in a new book by Christine Liava’a, Koe Kau To’a Na’anau Poletau. Valiant Volunteers: Soldiers from Tonga in the Great War.
On Monday some of the names from the book were read out on the Kaniva Tonga Radio Programme.
The broadcast prompted a call from Hehea Sina Faletau who told us that her grandfather, Sateki Faletau had gone to war.
His son, Maile Faletau, served during the Second World War as a medical officer.
There was pride in Hehea’s voice as she explained the connection with Sateki.
Here are the list of the Tongan soldiers taken from Christine Liava’a’s book.
Frederick Bruno Delamere, whose original name was Waldermar Bruno Sanft, was a maritime engineer who had trained with J.H. Adams of New Zealand for six years. When he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), he claimed to be of British nationality. In reality he was a German subject as his parents, Franz Carl Sanft and Martha Agnes Lehmann Sanft were both Germans, although living in Tonga.
Joseph Clarence Hughes was a musician, aged 30, born in Tonga. He enlisted in the AIF in the Australian Imperial Force in June 1916.
Edward Stewart James was a veterinary surgeon. He was the son of the Rev. C E James and was born in Tonga on November 29, 1889, when his father was working there.
Claude Napier King was born in Charters Towers, Queensland, but was living in Nuku’alofa in 1915. He was killed in action on August 8, 1918, by a sniper. His body was not recovered.
Walter Leyden was a son of John Henry Leyden or Lyden and Cecilia Elizabeth Leyden (nee Johnson) of Vava’u, Tonga.
Robert Hugh McGlew was an Englishman who was born in Sydney, New South Wales. He was an accountant working in Tonga and was 36 when he listed in Adelaide, South Australia, in 1917.
Harry Monk was an Englishman who was born in West Auckland and migrated to Australia and then Tonga. He was a surveyor and a member of the Nuku’aofa Club.
James Egan Moulton was the grandson of the Rev James Egan Moulton, founder of Tupou College.
Alfred Egbert Roberts was the son of John Hartley Roberts, Director of Education for Tonga and principal of Tonga College in the 1880s.
John Trotter was appointed as second assistant teacher at Tonga College in 1914, then became Government plantation manager.
Reverend J Laurent F Benezeth was a Marist brother in Tonga. Born in 1881, he is listed on the Tongan War Memorial
Reverend Camille Doizy was a Marist brother in Tonga, born 1884. He left Tonga for France during the war and is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
William Kanani Rudling was born in Hawai’i in 1896, the son of Thomas George Rudling and his Hawai’ian wife Eugenia Kahele. The family moved to Tonga where T.G. Rudling became the Assistant Collector of Customs and Postmaster in Vava’u
John William Alo.
Charles William Boyer travelled to Auckland from Tonga in early 1916 and joined the 4th Maori Contingent. He was a Lance Corporal in the No 1 Platoon.
Sateki Faletau of Vava’u was a medical student and hospital attendant in Tonga. He was born at Neiafu, Vava’u on October 24, 1894 and came to New Zealand in July 1916, aged 21. He enlisted and served as a Lance Corporal in the Maori Contingent. He embarked for England on October 11, 1916 from Wellington on the Tofua, but was discharged there as medically unfit. He returned to New Zealand then re-enlisted in 1919 in the New Zealand Medical Corps. He was finally discharged in 1920 and returned to Tonga, where he later married Celia Elizabeth Leyden, also of Vava’u. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
His full name was Sateki Veikune Faletau and he became the Hon. Siosateki Veikuna Faletau, 11th ‘Akau’ola, on December 8, 1932. He was Governor of Vava’u between 1936 – 1939, then Lieutenant-Colonel of the Tonga Defence Force during the Second World War and Minister for Police 1939-1952. The late Hon. Siaosi Filiapulotu Faletau, 12th ‘Akau’ola, the late Hon. ‘Inoke Fotu Faletau, 13th ‘Akau’ola, and the Rev Sione Faletau are his sons. His son Maile Faletau also served during the Second World War.
John Harper was a storekeeper for Burns Philp in Tonga. His next of kin was listed as his mother, Mrs Emele Harper of Nuku’alofa. His aunt was Mafikiholeva Percival. In 1916, after being escorted to Auckland because of his intemperate habits, he sailed on the troopship Navua.
Edwin Hughes was a baker and carpenter in Neiafu, Vava’u.
Guy Robert Jury was the son of Captain Jury, a part-Maori settler in Tongatapu with plantations at Fo’ui and Nukunuku
Baisley Leger was the son of James Paul Leger and Mereste Magila Tiumala, both born in Samoa but living in Nuku’alofa since 1897. He was a boat builder who enlisted in New Zealand in 1915, with the Rarotongans attached to B company, 3rd Maori Contingent. He served as a Sergeant and was wounded in a gas attack and evacuated to the 7th Field Ambulance, then to a Convalescent Hospital in France. He married Sela Vete in 1920 and they travelled to New Zealand in 1920. He later married Amelia Toli. He died in Auckland in 1973.
Francis Leger was a seaman, born in 1898, the brother of Baisley Leger. He served in France in the Pioneer Battalion. He returned to Tonga and married Meleane Fatafehi. He died in Vava’u in 1967 and listed on the Tongan War Memorial
David Loma or Lomu was an assistant Harbourmaster of Nuku’alofa, the son of Mafu. He enlisted in the 7th Maori Reinforcement as a Private and embarked from Wellington on August 16, 1916, for England. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
Ernest Mitchell travelled to New Zealand from Vava’u in 1916.
Wiliam Robert Moore, aged 28, was a carpenter who arrived in Auckland from Ha’apai aboard Talune on June 19, 1916.
Adolph Muller was a farmer in Tonga, brother of Miki Muller of Nuku’alofa. They were of Swiss/Samoan descent, being sons of Phillip Muller and Philomena Laukiki. He served in Egypt and Palestine. He returned to Tonga and married Mel Tatafu Fotofili in 1920. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial. He died in 1960.
Francis Alfred Payne was a farmer who enlisted in Takapuna, Auckland on November 9, 1915. He was born in 1896 in Tonga, a descendent of Alfred Payn and Oli Leva. He embarked from Wellington on February 5, 1916. He returned to New Zealand and was discharged on October 24, 1916. He remained in New Zealand and married Elsie Sunckell from Akaroa in 1920. He served in the Second World War. He died in 1957 in Ashburton, New Zealand, while on holiday.
James Victor Silva, of Portuguese descent, was born in New Zealand in 1889, son of Emanuel and Ethel Elizabeth (Edwards) Silva, but was a carpenter in Nuku’alofa.
Parker Stout Skeen was a cousin of Reginald Skeen. He was a son of Robert Lowis Skeen from New Zealand, chief justice of Tonga and his wife Eliza Fruean.
Sione Taliauli of Nuku’alofa was a young medical student training with Dr Bennett of Blenheim, New Zealand, when war broke out in August 1914. In October 23, 1915 he enlisted in Blenheim and joined the 3rd Maori Contingent as a Private. They trained at Narrow Neck Camp in Auckland then left for Egypt from Wellington in February 1916 on the troopship Navua. On arrival at Suez, he was transferred to various camps within Egypt, appointed temporarily Corporal and then admitted to hospital in Cairo. He died of pneumonia in October 1918. He is buried in Ramallah in Palestine. Sione Taliauli had a child Bakelo or Pakola in Tonga. His medals, the British War Medal and the Victory Medal, were sent to the child care of his aunt Alilua, of Kolofo’ou in 1923. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
George Tu’inukuafe was the son of john Tu’inukuafe (Sione Tuafusi) of Vava’u. He was born in Falepa. He arrived in Auckland in June 18, 1917 as a native clerk and worked as a gardener. He returned to New Zealand in December 1918 and was discharged there at his own request, in March 1919.
Willie John Vea was born on December 19, 1894, and was a medical student from Nuku’alofa. He travelled to New Zealand in 1918. He married Sisilia Fatafehi Tupou in August 1917. He was discharged on December 5, 1918, and returned to Tonga.
Robin Wilkinson Archer was born at Vuna Point, Taviuni, Fiji on April 21, 1874. He was a printer in Tonga.
Augustus Ofa Talauu Chamberlin was born in Nuku’alofa, Tonga in 1895.
Guy Waller Chamberlin, the brother of Ofa, was born in Tonga on August 9, 1898, and served as Private 76528
George Adrian Chester, an Englishman, a civil servant in Tonga Vava’u in 1915.
Henry William Cocker was the grandson of Joshua Cocker, the first British Consul in Tonga.
Joseph North Cocker was another grandson of Joshua Cocker, the first British Consul in Tonga.
Harold Eric Coleman lived in Tonga until early 1915.
Albert William Cook was a seaman born in 1894, the son of Albert William Cook.
Ralph Tugi Cowley was one of the Cowley family who are bakers in Nuku’alofa. He was the eldest son of Alfred and Mary Harriette Cowley originally from Derbyshire, England who arrived in Nuku’alofa in 1885. According to a death notice inserted in the New Zealand Herald by his sister Mrs Morre. He was aged 16 years and 10 months when he died. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
Roy Leslie Donaldson was born in 1889 in Raglan and is listed on the Tonga War Memorial.
Otto Fiedler was the son of John Fiedler of Nuku’alofa.
Dan Flood was a Customs officer born in 1898, whose mother, Mrs J.H. Spurr, lived in Whakatane. He arrived in New Zealand from Tonga in February 1916.
William Flower was a New Zealand railways clerk born in Nuku’alofa in 1898.
Tevita or David Fotu was born on March 19, 1888, in Nuku’alofa, the son of Nai Fotu of Tonga. He was a school teacher employed by the Tongan Education Board. He became a forestry worker at Woodhill, north of Auckland. He died in 1952 aged 64 and was cremated at Purewa Cemeter, Auckland.
Alexander Charles Taufa Goedicke was born in Tonga in May 1896.
Henry Hammerell was born in Samoa and was of Swedish descent. He was married to Alice Rose Cocker. He was killed at the battle of Messines on June 7, 1917. His wife remarried to Taniela Tu’ipulotu Kama of Maofaga. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
George Hurrel was the son of James and Amelia Hurrell nee Lomu of Ha’apai. He was a boat builder born on April 1, 1898 although he gave the date as 1895 on his enlistment papers. He died of influenza while serving in France in July 1918. His father in Tonga received his medals- the British war medal and the Victory Medal in 1921 and 1922 respectively.
Arnold Woodford Izard was the Chief Medical Officer in Tonga in 1914.
Leo Reginald (Mick) Jury was a New Zealand Maori from Wairarapa who had settled at Fo’ui Tongatapu.
Francis Henry Leyden was born in Tonga, the son of John Henry and Cecilia Leyden of Vava’u. He had been in the 2nd reserves and was training at Featherson Camp in Wairarpa when he died of influenza on December 5, 1918 aged 38. His niece Celia or Silia Leyden, a daughter of his brother Robert Leyden, married Sateki Faletau Akau’ola in Vava’u in 1934
James Michael Lynch was the son of Martin and Clara Lynch (nee Parons) of Vava’u. The family moved to Auckland in the early 1900s. He returned to Tonga. James was a Private in the Auckland Infantry Battalion. He embarked for England on June 26, 1916. He returned to New Zealand, then moved to Tonga. He married Sela Tapuaka and later Mele Siale. He returned to New Zealand in the 1950s and died in 1961 aged 74. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
Alfred Patrick Lynch was the brother of James Lynch.
Brian Gerald Mahoney was working in Vava’u, Tonga. He served as a Sergeant in the Auckland Regiment, was commissioned into the Royal Munster Fusiliers in 1917 and then attached to the Royal Air Force. According to a report in the Otago Daily Times he was killed in a flying accident on September 3, 1918.
William Handcock Mackay was a trader working for M.Muller at Tabikofe, Tongatapu and living in Nukunuku.
Tevita Mohenoa (Divit Mohenor) was a ship’s steward, living in New Zealand. His father was Esefe (Esafe) Mohenoa of Nuku’alofa.
Llewellyn Martin Nicholas born on January 18, 1876 in New Zealand and was a trader in Vava’u.
John Oswald was a trader in Tonga and served as a storeman.
Edward Lesley Joseph Parker was born in Tonga on November 2, 1884, and educated there. His brother Francis Robert Parker was born in Eua, Tonga, in 1874
Jack Parsons was born in Tongatapu on 25 March 1896.
William Parsons was the brother of Jack Parsons and was born in Tonga on May 1, 1894.
Thomas William and Harry Parsons were cousins of Jack Parsons and William Parsons, who were part Tongan, and also served in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force.
Charles Stuart Ramsey was the brother of Robert Campbell Ramsey and Arthur Gordon Ramsay. Charles return to Tonga and lived in Niuafo’ou. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
Robert Campbell Ramsay was the brother of Charles Stuart Ramsey, who was born in England in 1890. He won the Military Medal in October 1918 for his actions during an attack on German guns and tanks.
Owen Robert Ricks was born in Canada and was a storekeeper in Tonga.
William Douglas Robbins was an Englishman and a trader at Mu’a. He had been in Tonga since 1910.
Thomas Victor Roberts was the son of John Hartley Roberts, the director of Education and Principal of Tonga College in the 1880s. He was born in Australia in 1880. He worked for the Bank of Australasia and in 1899 he went to Tonga as Chief Clerk in the Customs Dept. He later became Treasurer of Tonga and Assistant Premier in 1907. He spoke Tongan fluently.
Reginald William Skeen was the nephew of Robert Lowis Skeen, the Chief Justice of Tonga. Reginald spent time in Tonga and is named in the Tongan War Memorial.
Robert Stout Skeen was a cousin of Reginald Skeen, son of Robert Lowis Skeen, Chief Justice of Tonga. Robert was a printer’s apprentice in Nuku’alofa.
George Joshua Skudder was a son of George Charles Skudder. George Joshua Skudder returned to Tonga and married Meletonga Prescott, with whom he had 11 chioldren.
Stanley Benjamin Skudder was another son of George Charles Skudder. He returned to Tonga and marry Mele Talia Tupou and had five children. He is also listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
Victor Percy Stuart worked as a clerk for Burns Philp in Tonga. He died in Auckland and is listed on the Tongan War Memorial
William Karmer Walter was born in Maofaga in 1888, the son of Carlos Kramer-Walter from Brazil.
Afelei was possibly a Nuiean living in Tonga. He is mentioned in the Tongan War Memorial.
Fata, a volunteer aged 23, was born in Niue. He arrived in Auckland from Nuku’alofa, Tonga aboard the Talune on on December 6, 1915.
Lauho, a 22 years-old volunteer from Niue, arrived in Auckland from Nuku’alofa, Tonga aboard the Talune on December 6, 1915. His last residence was Tonga, Nuku’alofa.
Mata’afi, a 27 years-old Niuean volunteer, arrived in Auckland aboard the Talune from Nuku’alofa, Tonga
Sino Folitau was a seaman born in Niue in 1888 who arrived in Auckland from Tonga on March 28, 1916.
K Inoke Utonika Thomas, 20, was of partly Tongan descent. He enlisted as no.22 in the 3rd Fiji Contingent on 15 April 1918.
Joseph Ratabua Vave was 21 when he enlisted in the 3rd Fiji Contingent. He was of Fijian and Tongan descent. He was the son of the Methodist minister of Davuilevu, Fiji who in turn was the son of the Rev. Mataiasi Vave from Masilamea, Tongatapu, one of the original Tongan Missionaries to Fiji.
Eminioni Kadivuki was of mixed Tokelauan and Tongan decsent. He was age 20 when he joined the 3rd Fiji Contingent
Barlow is listed on the Tongan War Memorial
Brown from Ha’apai was born in Scotland. He was 29 when he arrived in Auckland on November 7, 1915 from Tonga. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
J. Chapman lived in Vava’u in 1915. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
B Ferguson is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
Jack Harrison lived in Vava’u in 1915. He is listed on the Tongan War Memorial
Mr Folita (possibly Sino Folitau) was born in Tonga and arrived in Auckland aboard the Talune on March 28, 1916, from Nuku’alofa.
Johnstone is listed on the Tongan War Memorial
W.A. Lee is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
A.A Smith is listed on the Tongan War Memorial.
Mr Leiden (first name uncertain, but not Walter Leyden or Francis Leyden) was born in Tonga and served in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. He was 24 when he arrived in arrived Auckland on March 28, 1916 from Tonga.
Mr Teliti (first name uncertain) served in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. He was 27 when he arrived in Auckland from Tonga March 28, 1916.
William Duncan was a Scotsman born in 1875. He was an agent in Nuku’alofa
James Ferguson Scott.
Arthur F.L. Tindall had lived in Tonga for many years as a trader. He was living at Remuera, Auckland as an Island merchant when he enlisted in the 1st Reserves.
Editor’s note
I would like to thank Christine Liava’a for allowing Kaniva TongaNews to use the list of soldiers and their backgrounds from her book, Koe Kau To’a Na’anau Poletau. Valiant Volunteers: Soldiers from Tonga in the Great War.
You can contact the author at cliavaa@gmail.com if you would like to buy her book.
The book is published by Polygraphianz. The publisher’s website is www.polygraphianz.com
Telling the story of Tonga’s soldiers
Christine Liava’a has written a number of books bringing together the names and biographical details of soldiers from the Pacific islands who volunteered in the First World War.
She began her work on the Tongan book after completing a history of Fijian soldiers. She had also written about soldiers from Samoa and the central pacific islands.
She had earlier republished the index of Niuean solders from Margaret Pointer’s book Tagi Tote E Loto Haaku- My Heart is Crying, a history of the Niuean Contingent in the First World War.
Of those who volunteered from Tonga, she said most were foreigners living in the kingdom.
However, many had Tongan relatives.
“I actually expected that, because it was the same in Fiji,” she said.
“But I was surprised to find that a few actual Tongans did enlist, particularly since they did not need to, were not asked to, and were not British citizens.”
Liava’a said she was disappointed that she had received so little response to the book and hoped that more people would become interested in the soldiers.
The author will be giving a talk at the Auckland War Memorial Museum at the Te Kakano section at 12.30pm on Anzac Day.
She will also be appearing on Tangata Pasifika.
The main points
As the sun rises on Anzac Day dawn services this Saturday, Tongans will remember the 94 young men from the islands who served in the First World War.
The young men who enlisted were mainly expatriate Europeans who had been born in or worked in the kingdom, but several Tongans also enlisted.
The only Tongan to die in the war was Sione Talia’uli’, who was buried in Palestine in 1918.
The names of the volunteers from Tonga have been gathered together in a new book by Christine Liava’a, Koe Kau To’a Na’anau Poletau. Valiant Volunteers: Soldiers from Tonga in the Great War.
