A young gang member initially implicated in two Auckland murders during an alleged month-long crime spree in 2019 asked a judge for leniency as he was sentenced for one of the fatal shootings — involving an unarmed stranger who was turning away when the fatal blast rang out.

Tamati Kas Simpson, now 26, was 21 when he gunned down 23-year-old Faaifo “Joe” Siaosi, who bled to death in his mother’s arms in the front yard outside the family’s Ōtara home.

The gunman’s age at the time - and the impulsivity that accompanies such youth - was reason enough to deviate from the standard life sentence that usually comes with murder convictions, his lawyer suggested.

Justice Christian Whata agreed that case law involving the sentencing of young murder convicts has evolved over the past year, allowing for more frequent deviation from life terms.

But he ultimately rejected Simpson’s request on Thursday, repeating several times that there was one factor of the shooting he couldn’t get past.

“This action took place near a school and at the time kids could be expected to be leaving the school,” the judge said of the 2.50pm shooting, explaining that he saw the timing and location in a densely populated residential area as a “very aggravating” factor. “You must deter these types of actions... In a matter of moments, the place could have been flooded with kids.”

He ordered a life sentence with a minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years before Simpson can begin applying for parole.

In a lengthy trial at the High Court at Auckland that lasted from September to November last year, Simpson had fought two murder charges and a slew of other alleged crimes alongside a good friend and co-defendant who continues to have interim name suppression.

Authorities alleged the mates - fellow Killer Beez members who were described as having shared interests in gambling, drugs, money and guns - jointly committed the April 20, 2019, killing of Siaosi Tulua in Clover Park and Joe Siaosi’s murder just under a month later as part of a larger South Auckland crime spree that included drive-by shootings and attempts to rob tinnie houses.

Jurors were told the spree started three days before the first killing when a window was shot at in Takanini, missing an occupant who was selling drugs, followed by Tulua’s murder and a standover on the same day. They were then alleged to have committed burglary together on May 10 before murdering Siaosi a week later outside his home.

Tamati Simpson appears in the High Court at Auckland for sentencing on March 21, four months after jurors found him guilty of murdering Faaifo 'Joe' Siaosi outside his Ōtara home in 2019. Photo / Michael Craig

But after less than half a day of deliberations, jurors swiftly rejected the prosecution theory that the co-defendants had worked together. In a split decision, Simpson was found guilty of Siaosi’s murder and unlawful possession of a firearm but acquitted of the other murder and all other crime spree charges. His co-defendant, who still awaits sentencing, received an opposite outcome: acquitted of Siaosi’s murder but guilty of killing Tulua and the other crimes.

Tulua’s death wasn’t mentioned at all during the Thursday sentencing. Simpson’s former co-defendant, meanwhile, was mentioned only in passing, with the judge noting that both men were in the same car when Simpson opened fire on Siaosi but describing the other man as having appeared “shocked” by what had occurred.

The pair had been driving through the neighbourhood in a Holden Commodore that afternoon when they spotted Siaosi and another man outside Siaosi’s home.

Faaifo “Joe” Siaosi, 23, was fatally shot on Piako St, Otara, on May 17, 2019, as he walked away from a confrontation. Nearly five years later, Tamati Simpson has been sentenced for the killing.

“Mr Siaosi stared at you both,” Justice Whata said, recounting the facts of the case.

After stopping at a nearby dairy, the pair returned and stopped outside Siaosi’s home. They were asked to leave, followed by a verbal argument in which Siaosi challenged both defendants to a fight, but then the victim walked away, the judge noted.

As he was doing so, Simpson pulled out a sawn-off .22 rifle, pointed it Siaosi, hesitated, then shot, Whata said. The single bullet entered Siaosi’s arm but went on to penetrate his chest as well - causing his death.

“This was ... an impulsive, grossly reckless act by you,” the judge pointed out, describing it also as a “grossly disproportional” reaction to having been earlier challenged to a fight.

Police at the scene of Faaifo “Joe” Siaosi's murder on Piako Street, Otara, in May 2019. Tamati Simpson has been sentenced for the fatal shooting. Photo / Sam Sword

Faaifo 'Joe' Siaosi, 23, was shot outside his Otara home in May 2019. Tamati Kas Simpson was found guilty of his murder four years later.

Simpson claimed he intended to fire a warning shot, but the jury clearly disagreed that it was an accident through their guilty verdict.

Although gang affiliation was not a factor in the shooting, the ongoing gang warfare between the Killer Beez and the Tribesmen at the time had caused Simpson’s already unstable home environment to be even more so, the judge noted. Simpson’s family had been torn between allegiances, with his older brother a member of the Tribesmen.

It was all part of a challenging upbringing in which he was exposed to violence, gang life and substance abuse from a young age, the judge said, adding that given the “gangster’s background” he was immersed in, it was little surprise he joined a gang himself at 15.

But the defendant has also shown resilience, thriving in youth sports and achieving NCEA levels 1 and 2, he said.

Defence lawyer Marie Dyhrberg KC said her client has matured quite a lot in the five years since the shooting. He has shown remorse towards his victim’s family and has taken courses in prison in an effort to better himself.

“His partner has seen a huge change in his attitude,” she said. “He is really on a path of rehabilitation, and not a day goes by that he doesn’t wish the clock could be turned back...

“The person who went into prison is not the person who’s here today.”

She asked the judge for a lengthy determinate sentence rather than life imprisonment to reflect his youth and his potential for eventually becoming a productive member of society.

The Sentencing Act states that anyone convicted of murder must be sentenced to life imprisonment unless a judge determines it to be an exceptional case in which such a term would be “manifestly unjust”.

Prosecutor David Stevens argued against such a finding. He acknowledged that Simpson’s age at the time could be taken into account when considering if a sentence is manifestly unjust. But age alone, he argued, shouldn’t be enough to depart from the norm when there are no other exceptionally mitigating factors in Simpson’s favour.

Justice Whata disagreed to an extent, telling Simpson directly that there was “good reason to be optimistic about you” given his rehabilitation efforts so far. But he said there were too many aggravating factors - the biggest one being the proximity to Flat Bush Primary School. Serving his time while continuing to work on self-improvement will restore his mana, he told Simpson.

Faaifo 'Joe' Siaosi, 23, was shot outside his Otara home in May 2019. Tamati Kas Simpson was found guilty of his murder four years later.

Two families - one to support the victim, the other for the defendant - filled opposing sides of the large courtroom gallery as the sentence was determined.

Siaosi’s younger brother read through tears during his victim impact statement, describing a man who was down to earth, fearless, loyal to his loved ones and a friend who could never be replaced.

The victim’s older brother, in a similarly emotional address, described him as someone who had “the potential for greatness” - never starting trouble or talking poorly about others and “the most kind-hearted person you’d ever meet.

“There’s a lot of bad things I want to say to you, but that’s not going to bring [him] back,” he added. “All of our hearts are broken.”

Police at the scene of a fatal shooting in Piako St, Otara, in May 2019. Tamati Kas Simpson, then 21, was convicted four years later of having murdered "Joe" Siaosi, 23. Photo / Sam Sword

He described how their mother experienced heart palpitations as a result of her grief after her son died in her arms. Their mother had always wanted to address the defendant herself but she died in 2022 before the case went to trial.

“She always wanted to tell you that she forgives you,” he said. “She doesn’t want any other family to go through what we went through.”

The brother said that his own forgiveness of Simpson was for a long time the last thing on his mind, but he’s slowly come to realise through his faith it’s the right thing to do.

“I forgive you, but I’ll never forget what you did,” he said. “I hope you find it in your own heart to forgive yourself.”

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.