Luka Forman of RNZ

A University of Auckland student has been caught wearing smart glasses in a test, raising concerns about how the new tech could be used by students to cheat.

New products like Meta glasses have small built-in cameras which can be used to film what is in front of them, and have it answered by an outside helper or AI.

Exam supervisors would now have to check students wearing glasses to their exams to see if they could be using them to cheat.

Gone are the days of trying to smuggle pieces of paper into an exam or writing answers on a hand or water bottle label.

Technology has brought new ways for students to try to cheat their tests, as Computer Science Professor at the University of Auckland Ulrich Speidel explained.

“You can go, for example, and record your questions, you can possibly send them to external helpers and most of those glasses also project stuff into the glasses that only the wearer can see.”

A University of Auckland spokesperson said a student was seen wearing smart glasses during a test by an invigilator, after a pre-test announcement explicitly said no smart glasses or watches were allowed.

The student had the glasses taken off them, and was allowed to continue the test, they said.

The student was given a penalty over the incident, but the university would not say what it was.

Ulrich Speidel said exam invigilators would now be on the lookout for smart glasses.

“Generally what you can see is they’ve got rather broad hinge parts or large bridges, so we can ask our invigilators to go and look for those, and for example ask [or] offer masking tape to be put over them.”

Invigilators would tape over the cameras rather than taking the glasses, if students were using them as prescriptions.

Meta, the company that owned Instagram and Facebook, had two models of smart glasses made with brands Rayban and Oakley.

They retailed for between $350 and $750, depending on the model.

On the cheaper end, K-mart sold its own smart glasses for just $99 – which recorded videos and photos but did not have the AI features of the Meta ones.

Engineering student at AUT, Preston Williams, had a pair of the Meta glasses, which he used to make content for his business.

“I’ve got like a detailing business, so I do like POV [point of view] videos and stuff. But I don’t use it for tests, because there’s a massive white flashing light. So it’s kind of hard to be inconspicuous.”

However, that flashing light could be disabled through a relatively quick repair job.

US tech journalist Joanna Stern found in an investigation that dozens of services were available to do just that for about US$100 on Facebook marketplace.

However, those services did not appear to be available online in New Zealand.

Speidel said the university was keeping on top of cheating in exams, for now.

“I dread the day once smart glasses will be available as contact lenses. At that point I think it will be checkmate for us.”

His department has moved to mostly pen and paper tests with randomised multi-choice questions, meaning each student had different tests to their peers.

The University of Auckland spokesperson said it undertook an academic integrity investigation into the student with the smart glasses, resulting in a penalty for the student.

This story was first published on rnz.co.nz

Former Tongatapu 2 MP Dr Pingi Fasi, also known by the name ‘Uhilamoelangi, is notably absent from the list of candidates for the constituency’s upcoming by-election, despite being the person whose successful legal challenge led to the removal of former MP Sēmisi Sika and ultimately triggered the poll.

The Electoral Commission of Tonga has announced nine candidates for Tongatapu 2 and five for ʻOngo Niua 17 after nominations for the two parliamentary by-elections closed.

Fasi brought the election petition against Sika, accusing him of bribery in connection with the election. The court subsequently convicted Sika of bribery, resulting in his removal from Parliament and paving the way for the by-election.

However, Fasi’s name does not appear among the nine candidates confirmed by the Electoral Commission to contest the vacant seat.

The Commission’s announcement did not give any reason why Fasi was not standing, and it was not immediately clear whether he had decided against contesting the by-election or whether other circumstances were involved.

While Fasi will not contest the seat, Sika’s younger brother, Alvin Lafu Sika of Haveluloto, is among the nine candidates confirmed for the Tongatapu 2 by-election.

His candidacy adds another dimension to the contest, with a member of Sēmisi Sika’s family now seeking the parliamentary seat left vacant following his removal.

Former Niua 17 MP ‘Ilaisa Lepolo Taunisila makes political comeback in Tongatapu 2

Nine candidates for Tongatapu 2

The Electoral Commission confirmed the following candidates for Tongatapu 2:

1. Mounu Uaisele, Kolofōʻou
2. Malakai Matafonuafoʻou ʻOfa ki Wakawaka Koloamatangi, Kolofōʻou
3. Alvin Lafu Sika, Haveluloto
4. ʻOlioni Manoa, Haveluloto
5. Samiuela Vea, Kolofōʻou
6. Mele Teusivi ʻAmanaki, Fanga ʻo Pilolevu
7. Lei Paasi, Haveluloto
8. ʻIlaisa Lepolo Taunisila, Fanga ʻo Pilolevu
9. Sione Harvard Tupouniua, Kolofōʻou

Five candidates for ʻOngo Niua 17

The ʻOngo Niua 17 by-election was also triggered by the removal of its former MP, Lātai­fāingataʻa Tangimana, after he was convicted of bribery. His conviction resulted in the parliamentary seat becoming vacant, requiring voters in the constituency to return to the polls.

Five candidates have meanwhile been confirmed for the ʻOngo Niua 17 by-election:

1. Sitiveni Selui, Vaipoa
2. ʻAisake Hoatatau Finau, Vaipoa
3. Sione Tuifio Hui, Falehau
4. Paea ʻI Vaha Filimoehala, ʻEsia
5. ʻAminiasi Tonga Pauʻu Tangimana, Falehau

The Electoral Commission said the final electoral roll for the by-elections is expected to be completed on September 23.

Polling for both constituencies is scheduled for Thursday, October 8, 2026, from 9am until 4pm.

Two New Zealanders have been intercepted at Auckland International Airport after Customs officers discovered clothing allegedly saturated with methamphetamine in their luggage.

New Zealand Customs said both travellers had arrived on flights from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and were carrying sealed bags containing clothing that either felt unusual or showed signs of powder residue.

Tests carried out by Customs subsequently returned positive results for methamphetamine.

Customs Acting Manager Airports Northern Simon Peterson said similarities between the two interceptions suggested they were linked to a coordinated drug-smuggling operation.

“Both travellers arrived off flights from Kuala Lumpur carrying clothing impregnated with methamphetamine, using a very similar concealment method, and attempting to bring drugs into New Zealand,” Peterson said.

He warned that organised criminal groups were exploiting people to bring illicit drugs across New Zealand’s border.

“Make no mistake, this is organised crime trying to exploit New Zealanders for their own gain,” he said.

“The people behind these operations are motivated solely by profit. They do not care about those they recruit, or the damage caused by drugs.”

Customs did not disclose in its social media statement the identities of the two travellers, when the interceptions occurred, the quantity or estimated value of methamphetamine involved, or whether charges had been laid.

The unusual concealment method involves impregnating fabric with methamphetamine rather than attempting to hide the drug in a more readily identifiable form.

Peterson urged people approached to act as couriers to consider the potentially serious consequences before becoming involved.

“We want people to think carefully before becoming involved. Acting as a drug courier can have life-changing consequences, and anyone caught attempting to import illicit drugs into New Zealand can expect to face serious penalties,” he said.

A van has crashed into a power pole beside a road in Tonga, causing significant damage to the front of the vehicle.

A photograph obtained by Kaniva News shows the van off the roadway with its front end against a power pole.

The front of the vehicle appears to have sustained considerable damage, with parts of the bumper and other debris visible on the ground.

People can also be seen at the scene, while a traffic cone had been placed near the roadside.

It was not immediately clear what caused the crash or whether anyone was injured.

The exact location and time of the incident were also not immediately available.

Police and other relevant authorities have yet to release details about the incident.

Kaniva News is seeking further information.

Finn Blackwell of RNZ

How does a minor traffic accident lead to double murder?

That is what Crown prosecutors have put forward as their version of events in the trial of Lok Fung Lorrence Li.

Li is accused of murdering Fuk-Fu Joseph Kwok and his wife Mei Han Chong at their Ellerslie home in November 2023.

In the High Court at Auckland on Monday, Li entered guilty pleas through an interpreter to manslaughter, while pleading not guilty to murdering the couple.

Li also pleaded not guilty to a charge of conspiring to murder another person, who has name suppression.

He had been charged alongside another man, Shu Man Poon, who jurors were told earlier admitted to his role in the murder.

Poon was expected to give evidence later in Li’s trial.

Prosecutor Harrison Bell gave jurors the Crown’s account of the night of the murder.

Kwok, who was a theatre nurse at Auckland’s North Shore Hospital, had arrived home from work late the night before the murder.

Two hours later, the Crown said Li along with Poon arrived in a car with a stolen license plate, went into the home, and attacked Kwok.

Kwok was shot with an air gun, and stabbed four times in the chest and once in the neck, killing him, Bell said.

Mei Han Chong who was also in the home was killed by blunt force trauma to the head, before being taken out to Greenhithe on the city’s North Shore, where her body was dumped, the Crown submitted.

“What possessed these men to act in such a violent way, killing two people?” Bell asked.

“The Crown says the answer begins with Mr Li.”

Bell said about 11 months earlier, Li and Kwok had been involved in a traffic accident.

Li was told by Kwok’s insurance that he was at fault, and the issue was taken to the Disputes Tribunal.

“The Crown says as a result of that grievance and having received the Kwok’s home address from disclosure received from the Disputes Tribunal proceedings, Mr Li decided to go to the Kwok’s address, intending to kill them, and he enlisted the assistance of Mr Poon in doing so,” Bell said.

Bell explained that Kwok was found by his son, who was expecting a visit from his parents in Hamilton.

“He entered the house, saw his father lying on the floor with the smell of death, as he describes it,” Bell said.

The trial was also expected to go through a conspiracy between Poon and Li to murder another person, going so far as to travel to her property and spray paint over the security cameras, before being interrupted by a vehicle on the street, Bell said.

Li had received an email from the Disputes Tribunal earlier that same day, with the Kwok’s address attached, he said.

“Mr Li’s murderous plan shifted at that point from [the person] to the Kwok’s, or to Mr Kwok and anyone else they might encounter in his house,” the Crown submitted.

It was the Crown’s case that Li was not a bystander in the murder, but in fact the instigator of the murders.

“It might be suggested to you that this was all Mr Poon and that Mr Li did not knowingly participate in making the plan or assist in any way with the killings of the Kwoks as alleged by the Crown,” Bell said.

“The evidence, once you’ve heard it all, you may agree, does not support that proposition.”

The Crown could not say which of the two men dealt the fatal blows to the Kwok’s, but did not need to, Bell said.

One of Li’s defence lawyer, Rosemary Thomson, told jurors what happened to the Kwok’s was a tragedy, that should never have happened.

“There is nothing that I’m going to say in my opening or indeed the defence is going to say throughout the trial which should in any way suggest otherwise,” she said.

She pointed the jury to Li’s guilty plea of manslaughter.

“Mr Li has taken responsibility for his actions and accepts that he played a role.”

Thomson said Li did not have the necessary intention to commit the murders.

“The trial will therefore proceed on the basis that it will be a matter for you whether the Crown can establish a murderous intent.”

Thomson urged jurors to keep an open mind.

“All trials have two sides,” she said.

“As judges, you need to keep an open mind until you have heard all of the evidence and the legal directions from Her Honour.

“It is only then you can start reaching some conclusions.”

The trial is set to hear from its first witnesses on Tuesday.

Manslaughter within murder

Li had entered guilty pleas on Monday morning to manslaughter for both of the victims, despite not having those charges read out in the courtroom.

Justice Jane Anderson explained to the jury that every murder charge included within it a charge of manslaughter.

She said murder had three elements, the killing of one person by another, that the killing was done by an unlawful act, and intent.

“Not all homicides are blame worthy,” she said.

“However, the criminal law intervenes when a homicide is caused by an unlawful act.”

For manslaughter to be murder, the Crown must prove beyond reasonable doubt a third element of intention, Justice Anderson said.

This story was first published on rnz.co.nz

New South Wales Police are appealing for public assistance to locate 41-year-old Siaosi Finau, who is wanted on an outstanding arrest warrant in relation to alleged assault offences.

The Murrumbidgee Police District issued the appeal on social media, saying Finau is known to frequent the Griffith area in the Riverina region of New South Wales.

Police have warned members of the public not to approach Finau if they see him.

Instead, anyone who spots him has been asked to immediately contact emergency services by calling Triple Zero (000).

Police did not provide further details in the appeal about the alleged assault offences, including when or where they allegedly occurred or the circumstances surrounding the outstanding warrant.

Anyone with information that could assist police in locating Finau has been urged to contact Griffith Police Station on (02) 6969 4299 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

NSW Police have not identified Finau’s nationality or ethnic background in their public appeal.

The Murrumbidgee Police District covers Griffith and surrounding areas in the Riverina region of NSW.

A woman has reportedly died after a boat overturned in Tonga, according to preliminary reports circulating alongside a video apparently taken at the scene.

The video shows a boat towing another vessel that is upside down in the water.

Reports said the overturned vessel had apparently been launched shortly before the incident occurred. The circumstances surrounding the reported capsize, however, remain unclear.

It is understood that marine authorities were called to the scene following the incident.

A woman was reported to have died, but her death and the circumstances surrounding it have yet to be officially confirmed.

Police have yet to release a statement on the incident.

Kaniva News is seeking further information from the relevant authorities.

This is a developing story and will be updated when official information becomes available.